Snafu
by snapelicious
Summary: Why was Lupin so surprised to find out Harry had heard James' voice? What has Sirius been doing all summer? Why exactly is Harry such a great Seeker? Will Snape ever be "normal?" And how much like his father is Draco Malfoy? It all comes to a head during
1. Default Chapter

Snafu - Chapter 1 

It was the beginning of another year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and the Great Hall was bustling with excited students. High above the excitement, the bewitched ceiling of the Great Hall mirrored a thick storm that was taking place outdoors, complete with heavy rain, thunder and the occasional bright flash of lightning. 

The first-year students had been sorted and Headmaster Albus Dumbledore was just finishing his annual welcoming speech along with a long list of Rules and Regulations for the new term. 

Harry Potter, who was beginning his fifth year at Hogwarts, was normally excited to be back in the place that felt most like home to him. After another seemingly endless summer with his Muggle relatives the Dursleys, he welcomed the chance to get back to the things he enjoyed most; magic and mostly, the game of Quidditch. 

Last year's Tri-Wizard Tournament had definitely changed Harry. He found himself second-guessing everything around him and everyone's intentions. Having been fooled by a former Death-Eater posing as a teacher in order to kill him had left some deep-rooted marks on Harry's persona. 

Harry glanced around at the other students in the Great Hall that evening, and felt a slight pang of jealousy. They all seemed so normal compared to Harry. Granted, they did seem a tad more apprehensive then usual, see as Professor Dumbledore had announced, at the end of last term, that Voldemort had returned. 

_"But they don't lie in bed at night,"_ Harry thought to himself as he watched them all having their animated discussions, _"with the horrific images plaguing their dreams. They haven't witnessed the cruelty that I have."_

There were a handful of people that Harry knew he could always count on, two of which were sitting at the Gryffindor table with him: Ron Weasley, who was tapping on his empty plate impatiently, and Hermione Granger, who was staring attentively up at Dumbledore. 

"You know guys, it seems like that speech of Dumbledore's gets longer and longer every year," Ron said as the Headmaster finished talking, and the feast was laid before them. He quickly picked through the vast array of food, sampling a bit of everything within arms reach. 

"Ron," Hermione stated in her usual all-knowing tone, while buttering her bread, "you really need to learn to be more patient. There are new students every year and it is important that they know how things work around here." 

"What is _important_ is that we growing students get fed within a reasonable time period," he replied, stuffing a sizeable portion of mashed potatoes in his mouth. "I mean geez, we just spent how many hours cooped up on a train and…" 

"And just how many cream pies and cakes did you eat while you were 'cooped up' on the train?" Hermione shot back quickly knowing he would not have a chance to answer with his mouth full of food. 

"Hey, Harry," she said, moving her attention to Harry who was barely eating anything, "you feeling alright?" 

"Yeah, just got a lot on my mind," he replied sulkily. He wasn't really in the mood to talk. 

"I'm sure Sirius is fine, Harry," said Hermione, as if reading his mind, "What exactly did his letter say again?" 

Harry hadn't _seen_ Sirius since the end of the last school year, when Professor Dumbledore had sent him on a secret mission in preparation for fighting Voldemort who had regained his power. Sirius _had_ written to Harry though, about mid-July but Harry was having a hard time understanding what exactly Sirius was up to. 

Harry pulled the folded piece of parchment out of his pocket and handed it to Hermione. 

"Go on and read it yourself. I don't think I can look at it again, it's driving my crazy." 

Hermione unfolded the parchment, which had been folded and unfolded by Harry so many times over the last two months that it was becoming flimsy. Ron moved in closer to Hermione to hear the letter again. 

_"Dear Harry, I'm sorry I haven't been able to write to you until now. I hope you are well and that you are enjoying your summer holiday."_

Harry grunted, thinking about how he never enjoyed his summer holidays with the Dursleys. 

Hermione continued reading, _" I know you may be anxious, seeing as we parted so quickly last year, but I want you to know that I am fine. Professor Dumbledore got word to me before I had arrived at Reamus' place, saying he had a more pressing matter. When I arrived back at Hogwarts Dumbledore escorted me to the Ministry of Magic office, where I was granted a complete pardon. I don't know exactly how this all happened, but apparently there's someone in some kind of position of power who believed my story and, well to make a long story short, I'm free. I'm finally able to walk around without worrying about who sees me. I'm sure there are loads of people who will be very unhappy about this, and even Fudge seemed a bit shaky about giving me the pardon, but guess he didn't have a choice. Anyway, I'll be coming to see you as soon as I can. Dumbledore asked me to take one more trip for him and as soon as I'm finished I'll come to see you. Give my love to Ron and Hermione. I'll be seeing you soon. Love, Sirius."_

Hermione stared at the parchment for a moment, then refolded it carefully and handed it to Harry. "What I find curious is, who would possibly be able to get Sirius pardoned? Ron, you're father works at the Ministry, and he never said anything about who it was?" 

Ron shook his head, wiping some mashed potatoes off his chin. "He doesn't know. Just came home one day and said the Sirius had been granted a full pardon. It had to have been Dumbledore…" 

Harry let out a long sigh, clearly becoming frustrated, "No, Ron, it can't have been. The last time I saw Fudge and Professor Dumbledore together they clearly weren't seeing eye to eye on anything. I highly doubt they'd agree on what color the sky is let alone Sirius' guilt or innocence." 

Hermione knew this conversation was not helping Harry's mood and quickly changed the subject. "Well, what about the new teachers?" she asked, motioning towards the table where the Professors were dining. 

Harry and Ron looked up at the Head Table and, for the first time since their arrival, noticed the two empty seats. One seat was positioned between Madam Hooch, the Flying Instructor and Professor Snape, the Potions Master and Harry's least favorite teacher at Hogwarts. Professor Severus Snape had tried to make Harry's life at Hogwarts miserable from day one. He was the Head of Slytherin House and was notorious for favoring his own students while needlessly punishing students in Gryffindor. The other empty chair was between Snape's other side and Professor Dumbledore. 

"Well, one of them will be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher obviously," Hermione continued, "But who's the other chair for?" 

Ron replied, with a rather sarcastic tone in his voice, "Perhaps Dumbledore has finally caught on to the fact that none of the Dark Arts Professors last longer than a year, so he's got two of them coming in this year. You know, a back up one already in place so he doesn't have to go through the whole interviewing process again next summer." 

Harry couldn't help but laugh at Ron's remark, which, while he knew it to be completely in jest, did make sense in an odd sort of way. 

"Well, that gives us two mysteries to sort out now, doesn't it? 'What's going on with Sirius?' and 'Who'll fill they empty chairs?'" Harry did not think he could take another puzzle to sort out. His brain already felt like it was going to explode. 

"It looks," Hermione started slowly, her mouth gaped open in disbelief, "like we may be able to answer both of those questions at the same time." 

Harry and Ron both looked around to see what had caught her attention. They clearly weren't the only ones with a sudden interest in what was standing at the door. The Great Hall, which moments before had been ringing with the sound of students laughing and talking, was suddenly silent except for the sound of the dying rain from the ceiling above. 

Harry immediately jumped from his seat when he saw Sirius Black standing in the doorway. He was much more handsome than when Harry last saw him. Clearly, freedom from being on the run from the law suited him well. 

Sirius seemed to be hurrying someone along from the hallway outside with the wave of his hand. And moments later, there was another surprise in the doorway. It was a rather petite woman who clearly had not had anything to shield her from the rain, as she was completely drenched from head to toe. More peculiar however, was the fact that this woman was not wearing the usual cloak or robe worn by a witches and wizards, but rather she was dressed in ordinary Muggle clothing. 

Sirius whispered something in her ear and the woman shook her head vehemently. He then put his arm out to her and helped her along the marble floor towards the Head Table. As they passed Harry, Sirius winked and mouthed a hello to him. Harry nodded back, as he sat back down in his chair. He looked as stunned as every other student as the odd-looking pair passed by. 

Albus welcomed them both as Mr. Filch, the caretaker, handed the lady a towel, which she graciously accepted. After dabbing herself quickly with the towel, she laid it on the chair between the completely bewildered looking Professor Snape and the Headmaster and sat down. Sirius took his place on the other side of Snape and looked out over the crowd of students, who were now quietly whispering amongst themselves. 

"If I may have your attention for one more moment," Professor Dumbledore called to the students, "I would like to welcome our two newest teachers, Professors Black and Kidrin. Professor Black will be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Professor Kidrin will be instructing the Muggle Studies classes, which, as I mentioned earlier are required classes this year." He paused a moment letting the students take in the information, then continued, "I trust that all the students here at Hogwarts will make them feel welcome." 

Both of the new teachers nodded slightly as the students politely clapped. The Hall slowly filled with the sound of students talking. 

Hermione was the first of the three to speak. "You had no idea he was coming?" 

Harry was staring at the Head Table as if in a trance, "No idea. I don't believe this, Sirius teaching here… at Hogwarts…" 

"Well let's hope he's got more luck than the others," Ron chimed in. 

But Harry wasn't listening to anything. His attention was focused on Madam Kidrin who was talking very enthusiastically with Professor Dumbledore. 

"So then I said, 'I will not use any magic Sirius, I the dim one who forgot to pack an umbrella so I've got to live with the consequences'," she laughed and took a sip of her Butterbeer, shaking her head. 

Sirius poked his head around Professor Snape as if he wasn't even in the chair next to him, "I even offered to dry her off once she got inside, but she'd have nothing to do with it. Never seen anyone take their job so seriously." He turned his attention back to his plate of food. 

Albus chuckled, his blue eyes twinkling behind his half-moon spectacles. "Yes, I seem to have a knack for acquiring the most dedicated teachers. Professor Snape here is the same way." His eyes now resting on the raven-haired professor between the two newest additions, who clearly did not look at all pleased to be seated where he was. 

Professor Kidrin looked over at Professor Snape as if noticing him for the first time. "Professor Snape? Jena Kidrin. Pleased to meet you at last," her hand outstretched, "I've heard you are quite the Potions guru." 

Snape glanced at her hand as if repulsed at the thought of touching it_._

_ "I've heard you are quite the Potions guru." _Her voice played back mockingly in his head._ What the hell is that supposed to mean? If you think for a moment that I am going to cave into your little girlish giggling and silly stories you have another thing coming. How dare you come traipsing into this school, this Wizarding school mind you, refusing to do magic, wearing those ridiculous Muggle clothes, on the arm of that infernal Sirius Black no less… Mark my words Madam, if you so much as look at me the wrong way I will knock that pretty little smile right off your face._

The thought of spiking her Pumpkin juice the next morning with some poisonous concoction put a glint in his beady black eyes. 

He abruptly shook her hand. "Pleasure," the words were almost forced from his lips. He immediately went back to his meal in front of him and his thoughts of torture. 

Sirius leaned behind Snape and addressed Jena calmly, "You'll have to excuse Severus, he spends way to much time in the dungeons. Forgets how to interact in social situations. That's been a problem of his since I can remember. Never was much of a social butterfly were ya', Sev." 

Severus tried to ignore Black's remarks, looking out over the ocean of students in the Hall. Jena noticed, though, a slight twitch in Snape's forehead and knew Sirius' comments were hitting a nerve. 

She shook her head at Black, "Sirius, really I don't think…" she started, but was cut off by Albus who had risen from his chair. 

"I would now like to ask that all students please follow their House Prefects to your dormitories. I trust you will all get rested tonight and be ready for your classes tomorrow morning. Goodnight." Albus sat back down and watched as the students began filing slowly out of the Great Hall. 

Severus took the opportunity to escape from the table and stood up to leave. 

"Where you off to so quickly, Snape?" Sirius asked accusingly. 

"Some of us _Professors_," Snape hissed giving Sirius the once over, "and I use that term loosely, like to be prepared for classes. Besides I prefer to make myself scarce when the 'Sirius Black Freedom Fighters' come around." 

Jena followed Snape's glare and noticed three students, making their way towards the Head Table. She did not recognize the lanky, red-haired boy or the girl accompanying him. She did however, know the boy in front of them, the one smiling at Sirius as he pushed his way through the crowd of students leaving the Hall. This, she knew immediately was Harry Potter. 

Snape had already left the table and made his way through door without so much as a second glance back. 

Jena turned to Dumbledore, "I should really get to my quarters and get out of these wet clothes. I've got to get ready for lessons tomorrow myself." 

Sirius looked up at her, "Hang on, I'll walk with you." 

"No really, Sirius," looking back and seeing Harry getting closer, "stay and visit awhile, I'll find my way just fine." 

Sirius looked puzzled at her sudden interest in departing. Albus motioned for Filch, and asked him if he could show Jena to her quarters. 

"Be happy to, Professor," Filch said, although he didn't look like he was really ever happy about anything. 

Jena wished Professor Dumbledore and Sirius goodnight and followed Filch out the same door through which Professor Snape had gone moments before. 

Most everyone had cleared the Great Hall, leaving only the trio, Sirius, and Professor Minerva McGonagall. 

"I trust that you will make sure these students are in the dormitories shortly Professor Black," she said warningly, glaring at them through her wire-rimmed glasses. 

Sirius nodded and watched Minerva exit the Great Hall, leaving the four of them alone at last. 

Being as it was indeed getting late, Harry didn't have time to ask Sirius much. Sirius assured Harry that everything was fine and promised he would fill them in on the details of the last few months when time permitted. After saying their goodnights, the three Gryffindors made their way to their dormitories and settled in for the night. 

Harry lay in his four-poster bed that night thinking about the events of the last few hours. 

He had so many questions for Sirius and desperately wished they could have had more time together. What little information he had gotten from his godfather, had only brought up more questions. 

_Who had gotten Sirius pardoned? Where had he been between the time he was freed and his arrival at Hogwarts? What was the deal with the new Muggle Studies teacher?_

Harry finally drifted off to a peaceful sleep knowing that, now that Sirius was back, he would never have to spend another miserable minute with the Dursleys again. 


	2. Chapter 02

Snafu - Chapter 2 

Harry awoke the next morning feeling as if a heavy weight had been lifted from his shoulders. All the worries about Sirius' welfare that had been swimming through his mind the last few months were now gone and he was ready to begin his fifth year. 

He was feeling so good in fact, that he simply ignored the callous comments that spewed from Draco Malfoy as he passed by the Slytherin table at breakfast. 

"Seems your godfather's a Muggle-lover too, eh, Potter?" Draco hissed. "Probably gonna be hearing the pitter-patter of little Mudblood feet roaming the halls before the year's over." 

Draco's cronies Crabbe and Goyle grunted in disgust at the thought. 

_I wonder if he knows_, Harry thought to himself as he took his seat for breakfast, _how his father who he holds in such high regards… who he brags about because of his high position in the Ministry of Magic, is nothing more than a petty servant… a mere coward._

Harry almost smiled to himself when he thought of what Draco's reaction would be if he had seen, as Harry had, his almighty father groveling at Voldemort's feet like a helpless child. 

"Looks like we've got Muggle Studies first thing today," Hermione said, pulling Harry from his thoughts. 

Hermione, being her usual studious self, was reviewing her class schedule. Her tone dropped though as she continued "…with the Slytherins." 

Ron, who had just finished a warm cinnamon bun and was licking the icing from his fingers, shook his head, "Poor Professor Kidrin, do you think she has a clue what she's up against?" 

Harry took a bite of his scrambled eggs and glanced up to the Head Table where Professor Kidrin was talking with Rubeus Hagrid. Hagrid, as he was known around Hogwarts, another person Harry could proudly call "friend". 

~XXX~ 

Harry, Ron and Hermione had no problem finding their way to the Muggle Studies classroom. It was located directly across the hall from the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom where Professor Black was preparing to address his own group of students. Harry was tempted to poke his head in the door and give a wave to Sirius, but Hermione was pulling him by his robes in the opposite direction. 

"Come on now, Harry," she spoke hurriedly, "we can't be late for class. You've got all year to catch up with Sirius." 

Harry reluctantly turned and followed Hermione into the classroom. They took the only two empty seats next to Ron, who was already sitting, gazing around the room in amazement. 

"My father would have a field day in here," he whispered, his eyes slowly scanning the room. 

The classroom was filled with items clearly from the Muggle world. There were photographs, pictures and posters hanging on the walls, which, unlike the paintings gracing the corridors of the school, did not move or talk. 

Some of the students, like Harry and Hermione, had grown up around these types of Muggle things. They recognized the vacuum cleaner, the pencil sharpener, and the piles of Muggle magazines, books and newspapers sitting on the shelves along the walls. Other students like Ron, were unfamiliar with what the possible use of a little metal hook dangling from a string on the end of a stick could be. 

Before Ron had a chance to ask Harry or Hermione what some of the items were, Professor Kidrin stood up from behind her desk. 

Her long hair, which had been drenched the previous evening, was now pulled neatly back into a wispy knot at the nape of her neck. She was wearing Muggle clothes and reminded Harry of the type of woman who should be sitting behind a desk giving the evening report on a Muggle news program. 

"Good morning class," she started, her voice crisp. "Welcome to Muggle Studies. My name is Professor Kidrin." She glided between the tables slowly as she continued. 

"Many of you may have noticed that there are no textbooks required for this class. I do not believe that the lessons you will be learning can actually be taught from reading books. I prefer a more hands on approach." 

A snicker came from the back of the class as Draco Malfoy mumbled something to Crabbe and Goyle. 

Professor Kidrin either didn't hear them or chose to ignore them. 

"I am aware that some of you are familiar with the Muggle way of life, either from your own families or from friends, and I hope that you do not find this class too mundane. I am also well aware that some of you may be a little less " - she paused as if searching for the right word - " receptive to my teaching, but nonetheless you are mine for two hours every Monday morning and I will be taking every step necessary to broaden you minds a bit." 

She stopped walking as she approached the Slytherin students. "Hopefully by the end of the term each of you will walk away with a newfound appreciation of the Muggle Community… or at least a tolerance of it." 

Professor Kidrin's eyes scanned the Slytherins before she turned walked back to the front of the room. They glared back sullenly, and Draco resumed his hushed conversation. 

"Now, I noticed many of you admiring my collection of items here in the room. You will be given an opportunity in a short time to explore my treasures, but first I will be asking you to complete a short assignment. What I would like from each of you is a short essay, not more than a page or two describing your feelings about Muggles." She stopped short and looked over to Hermione who was pulling a quill and blank parchment from her bag. 

"No dear, you won't be needing those," she said as she made her way towards a tall metal cabinet. She pulled open the doors of the cabinet revealing what Harry recognized as Muggle school supplies similar to those that his Uncle Vernon bought for Dudley each year. There were pads of paper, pens, pencils, paper clips, scissors, rulers and more. Professor Kidrin pulled two boxes of pens from the closet and handed them to Neville Longbottom, who was sitting closest to the cabinet. 

"Would you be a dear and hand these out for me, sweetheart?" she asked, handing the boxes of pens to Neville. He nodded and began walking between the tables, handing one to each student. 

Professor Kidrin stooped down and began pulling pads of paper out from the bottom shelf of the cabinet. She counted out twenty four pads and carried them up to her desk. 

_"I'm getting hungry,"_ Harry heard an odd voice call out, and he looked quickly around the room. None of the other students seemed to have noticed the voice. 

Professor Kidrin glanced at her watch quickly, then looked searchingly around at the students. 

"You there in the back," she said looking directly at Draco Malfoy, who was snickering at Neville as he fumbled with the pens. "Would you mind giving me a hand and passing these out to the other students? One to each, please." 

Draco looked appalled to be asked to do anything to assist her, but knew better than to flat-out refuse a Professor's request. He stood up and began slowly walking up to the desk, reaching inside his robes for his wand. If there was anything Draco detested more than Muggles, it was manual labor. Unlike Neville, who had finally finished his task and was once again seated at his desk, Draco planned to use magic to distribute the paper. 

Professor Kidrin had her back to Draco and the rest of the students, and was leaning over a small box that lay on a table behind her desk. Whatever was in the box was apparently alive and giving her some trouble. Harry and Ron could hear her mumbling something as she thrust her hand sporadically into the box. 

Draco stood in front of her desk and pointed his wand at the stack of paper pads. 

"_Wingardium Leviosa_," he said lazily. 

The other students waited, expecting at least one of the pads to levitate from the desk. 

Nothing happened. 

Draco looked confused and moved closer to the desk, his wand still pointed at the paper. "_Wingadium Leviosa_", he repeated, his voice more commanding this time. 

Still nothing happened. 

The other Slytherins looked baffled, while some the Gryffindor students tried to stifle their giggles. 

"Gotcha, you little rodent," exclaimed Professor Kidrin, pulling something quickly from the box and hurrying towards a large glass tank a few feet away. The large tank looked something like a display of greenery with a wide variety of plant life. She dropped the item she had carried to the tank into it. The class had been watching her movements with curiosity, and now, as the thing falling though the air writhed and screeched, they could see it was a small white mouse. Within moments they all understood why the mouse had been so desperate to avoid capture. 

They all watched silently as, from the back of the tank, gliding seamlessly between two rocks, came a russet red colored snake. It raised its body slowly, swaying its head ever so slightly as it rose. The little mouse did not have a chance to react. Before it even saw its attacker, the snake had swooped down up it locking it in its jaws. The mouse squirmed for a few moments as it dangled from the snake's mouth, finally becoming still and allowing itself to be swallowed slowly. 

Professor Kidrin turned back to her desk and saw that Draco was staring at the scene that had just unfolded in the tank. His wand was still pointed at the stack of paper on her desk, which still had not moved. 

"Oh, sorry, dear," she said, bringing Draco's attention away from the snake's feast, "I forgot to mention that you cannot do magic in my classroom. You'll need to go and hand those out one by one as the other lad did." 

Draco's mouth dropped, "Excuse me, Professor. What do you mean we aren't allowed to do magic in your classroom?" 

"_Can't_ do magic, sir. Meaning you _cannot_ do magic in my classroom, it is physically impossible. I can't very well teach you to appreciate the lifestyles of Muggles if you are constantly doing magic in class, now can I?" 

She picked up the stack of paper pads and handed them to Draco who reluctantly took them. 

Draco's face reddened and he looked as if he wanted to hurl the paper right back at Professor Kidrin, but the thought of losing House Points from Slytherin kept him at bay. Instead he forced a more civilized reply, "Of course not, Professor. One to each then, correct?" 

She nodded, and he turned quickly to pass them out. 

"Alright then, class," Professor Kidrin said, turning to the rest of the students, "You are now being given pads of paper, and I see you already have your pens. You will not be using quills and parchment for any assignments for my class. Throughout the year, you may need to replenish your supplies so feel free to take whatever you need from the supply cabinet." She pointed back to the tall metal cabinet from which she had retrieved the pens and paper. 

Draco finished passing out the paper to each of the students and resumed his seat, slouching disrespectfully. 

"Now that you have your supplies, you may begin writing your essays. When you have finished, please bring them up and lay them on my desk. You are then free to peruse the room and handle anything you'd like. You will not be graded on today's assignment, they are just going to be used to give me an insight into your thoughts, so be honest. 

"Oh, and please don't forget to put your names on your papers," she added before taking a seat at her own desk, and shifting though her class agendas for the week. 

Harry had barely finished writing his name on his paper when Draco stood up from his seat and strolled to Professor Kidrin's desk, paper in hand. 

Professor Kidrin looked up from her reading as Draco lay his essay down on her, a smug look on his face. 

"That was quick," she said picking up his essay. "_Muggles are useless, defenseless gits_," she read out loud from his paper. 

Draco smirked and glanced back toward his little circle of Slytherins, who had burst into mocking sniggers. 

"Well, that's brutally honest then, isn't it?" she said, scanning the rest of the paper, "but it seems you forgot to put your name on it. Here, you can use one of my pens." She handed him a pen from her desk drawer and Draco scrawled his name and handed both items back to her. 

Professor Kidrin read his name and a look of comprehension came over her face. "Draco _Malfoy_. Any relation to Lucius?" 

"He's my father, Professor", he replied proudly. 

"I see," she said with a cold glare. "Well then, since you've finished the assignment why don't you look around the room at my collection of Muggle items until class is over. Feel free to handle anything…except Addie" - she motioned towards the snake's tank - "she's a bit temperamental." 

One by one, the students finished their essays, and began their appraisal of the sundry assortment of Muggle objects. 

Seamus Finnigan, a Gryffindor student, was admiring a 1994 World Cup Program signed by the entire French team. 

"That was quite a game." Professor Kidrin said coming up behind Seamus. 

"You were there?" Seamus exclaimed excitedly. 

"Are you kidding? Football has always been one of my favorite sports. You're a fan, I take it?" 

"Absolutely! Emmanuel Petit is my hero. Man, can he play." 

"Not only is Emmanuel a superb player, but he's a really splendid man." 

"You know him?" Seamus replied, his eyes practically bursting out of their sockets. 

"Oh, yes," she continued aptly. "He taught me a few of his better moves. I've got a ball around here somewhere. Maybe one day we can take the class outdoors and teach them how to play." 

Seamus was overjoyed with that idea, "That would be wicked, Professor!" 

"Well, make sure you take a good look around at everything…football isn't the only good thing about Muggles you know," she said as she turned away. 

She scanned the room, watching as the students studied all the Muggle items. 

Hermione was busy trying to show Ron how a fishing pole was used as an amused Harry watched Ron's look of utter bafflement. 

"So you're telling me," Ron said, "that in order to catch a stupid little fish, you have to put… what is it called again?" he asked, looking over at Harry. 

"Bait," Harry replied trying not to laugh. 

"You have to put _bait_ like a worm or something on the end of this hook" - Ron continued pointing to the shiny silver hook at the end of the line - "and then you have to drop it in the water and _wait_ for a fish to bite it?" 

"That's right," replied Hermione matter-of-factly, "Then, when you feel the fish biting on the end of the string, you turn this little wheel here and it brings the fish up to you." 

"But how long does it take for a fish to bite at the bait?" he asked. 

"Well, it varies. Sometimes a few minutes; sometimes you have to wait a longer." 

"That's just nutters," Ron stated, disgusted, "Seems like a big waste of time to sit around all day _hoping_ that one stupid fish bites for ya'." 

Hermione rolled her eyes, realizing Ron would never get it. She replaced the fishing pole against the wall as Professor Kidrin addressed the class. 

"If everyone would be so kind as to put away everything and return to your seats, it is almost time for class to end." 

She watched as the students began putting the Muggle items back in the appropriate places and headed back to their seats. Draco, Crabbe and Goyle were still standing however. Draco was holding something in his hands, which Crabbe and Goyle were staring at with their usual bewildered looks. 

"Those, Mr. Malfoy, are numchucks," stated Professor Kidrin. 

Draco looked up for the object towards Professor Kidrin as she continued, "They are used as a form of defense in the martial arts field. They are quite dangerous when used properly." 

Draco smiled slightly, "You've got to be joking Professor." He held the numchucks up for the whole class to see. "Muggles actually defend themselves with these?" 

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy. Believe it or not, Muggles have quite a few weapons they use to defend themselves against each other and even against Wizards." 

Draco and many of the Slytherins laughed out loud at her last statement. 

"No offense Professor," Draco drawled sarcastically, "but I hardly doubt that anything could protect a Muggle from an attacking Wizard." He laid the numchucks back on the shelf from where he got them and started back to his seat as if the subject was closed. 

Professor Kidrin however, continued, her eyes beading up, "You're sadly mistaken, Mr. Malfoy. Muggles are a lot stronger than you give them credit for. But seeing how closed minded you are on the subject, how about we have a little fun?" 

Draco leaned back in his chair his arms folded across his chest, eyeing her suspiciously. 

She continued, "How confident are you that Muggles are completely defenseless?" 

He thought a moment as his classmates stared at him. "I'd bet my life on it Professor," he replied callously, staring her straight in the eye. 

Professor Kidrin did not blink, but returned his stare. "Well, Mr. Malfoy, you're too young to die just yet. How about House Points for Slytherin." 

Draco looked at his fellow Slytherins, not sure where this was going. "What do you mean, Professor?" 

Professor Kidrin relaxed a little and looked around at the class before her. She could sense the contagion of confusion running through her students. 

"A challenge, Mr. Malfoy, I'm challenging you. Next class, which is week from today, you and I will go head to head. You will of course be armed with your wand and I will not. You may use any curse, hex or spell you wish as long as it isn't life-threatening, of course. We can't have you expelled for offing a teacher." 

She smiled as she watched the look on his face. He was no longer looking as confident. She continued, "I will be allowed no magic whatsoever. In fact, I won't even arm myself with any type of Muggle weapon." 

Draco looked completely lost. "So, let me get this straight, Professor. What you are proposing is that I attack you using magic and you will attempt to defend yourself with nothing more than your own hands? Is this some kind of joke?" 

"Absolutely not, and to make it even more interesting, let's wager fifty of Slytherin's House Points. If you are successful, Slytherin receives fifty House Points." 

Whispers broke out among the other students who could not believe what Professor Kidrin was proposing. 

She continued, "But if I am successful in defending myself, I shall deduct fifty House Points from Slytherin." 

Draco looked around at the other members of his House who were nodding him on frantically. They seemed quite sure there was no way they could possibly lose. 

"Alright then, Professor, I'll accept your challenge, but I will need to get the terms in writing. I don't want to be in any trouble for attacking a teacher," he said with a smirk. 

"Of course," she replied, reaching over her desk for a pen and paper. She took a moment to write something down, tore the paper off the pad and carried it back to Draco. "Here you go Mr. Malfoy, this should be sufficient." She said, handing him the note. 

Draco read what she had written. 

_I, Jena Kidrin, do hereby challenge Draco Malfoy to a duel for the purposes of a class demonstration on Monday, September 9th , to take place outdoors. Use of any of the Unforgiveable Curses is forbidden. Signed Professor Jena Kidrin. _

Draco folded the note neatly and placed it in his inside robe pocket, nodding. 

"Alright, class," she said, glancing at her watch, "next Monday's class demonstration will be held outdoors since magic cannot be done in the classroom. We will be meeting at the front entrance doors of the castle. I hope you all have a good first week and I will see you all next Monday. You are dismissed." 

The students filed out quickly, anxious to talk about the upcoming event. Draco and his cronies were already bragging. 

"This will be the easiest fifty points Slytherin has ever earned," stated Pansy Parkinson, one of Draco's Slytherin classmates, "I _almost_ feel sorry for Professor Kidrin making a fool of herself and everything."


	3. Chapter 03

Snafu - Chapter 3 

The rest of the week went by without much incident. Harry's classes and the Professors had not changed much since the previous year. 

Professor Trelawney, Harry's Divination teacher, was still predicting great sorrow and distress in his future. 

"Life as you have known it dear, will be over before Christmas," she predicted on Tuesday, with the usual air of drama in her voice. 

Harry, of course, took everything she said with a grain of salt. Technically, he should have died about fifty times by now according to her "insights". 

Professor Binns, the ghostly History of Magic teacher, who apparently unbeknownst to himself had been dead for years, was still as boring as ever. 

After an hour-long lecture through which most of the class slept, Harry, Ron and Hermione emerged from his class hungry as bears. 

"What I find strange," Hermione said, as the three friends made their way to the Great Hall for lunch, "is that we're in our fifth year at Hogwarts and _now_ Professor Binns wants to focus on the origins of magic. You would have thought that would have been dealt with in our first year." 

What _I_ find strange," Ron replied, stifling a yawn with his History of Magic text, "is that you actually stayed awake to make that statement." 

Hermione was used to Ron's lackadaisical attitude towards his schoolwork. 

"Well, if I were you, I'd learn to force myself to stay awake during class," she said. "That project Professor Binns assigned is due in three weeks and you'd better not be expecting me to help you with it. Either of you," she added, glaring at Harry, who still did not look like he had completely woken from his nap. 

"Don't worry, Hermione," Ron said as he rolled his eyes, "I think we can handle a four parchment essay on an important wizard in history." 

"Alright then, who are _you_ going to write about?" she asked, a bit surprised that he even knew what the project was. 

"Merlin," Ron replied. 

"That is _so_ cliché," Hermione said disapprovingly, as she headed into the crowded Great Hall ahead of them. 

~XXX~ 

Finally Friday came, a day Harry had been looking forward to most of all, not because it signaled the end of a long week, but because their first Defense Against the Dark Arts class was scheduled for that day. 

"I wonder what it's gonna be like having Sirius as a teacher," Harry said as he, Ron and Hermione were finishing breakfast. He was so excited at the thought of this class he could barely finish his black pudding. 

Harry had not been able to talk to Sirius much at all since he'd been back at Hogwarts. Between Harry's assignments and Sirius' class preparations, neither of them had much free time. The few spare moments Harry had tried to meet with Sirius, he had been hanging around with Professor Kidrin who, for some reason did not seem to be too keen to be around Harry. 

"Think Sirius will tell us about Azkaban?" Ron asked, as he leaned back from the table with a full stomach. 

"First off, Ron, you'd better not call him by his first name in class," Hermione replied in her usual all knowing tone, "He's a Professor now you know, so you had best address him as one." 

Ron shot her a look and was about to make a snide remark when Harry broke in. 

"What gets me is that he seems more interested in Professor Kidrin than spending any time with his own godson," Harry said jealously, "I mean he was my father's best friend, I'm his godson and we've been apart for the last fifteen years. You'd think he'd be making more of an effort to spend time with me." 

Hermione started in, "Harry, you've got to remember he spent thirteen years in Azkaban, then another two on the run. He's probably trying to - uh…" she leaned in closer and lowered her voice to a whisper, "make up for lost time." 

Hermione noticed that neither Ron nor Harry seemed to understand what she was getting at. 

"You know," she continued quietly as her eyes darted around to make sure no one was eavesdropping, "Professor Kidrin's young and attractive, Sirius fresh out of a long prison stay…it's only natural you know." 

Ron's jaw dropped as a look of comprehension came over his face. "Do you think they're…_together_?" 

Harry, who up until hearing Ron say that had had no idea what Hermione had been babbling about, looked up quickly. 

"I don't know," Hermione continued, shrugging her shoulders, "but it makes logical sense, doesn't it?" 

All three of them glanced up to the Head Table where Sirius was talking animatedly to Professor Kidrin with a very perturbed Professor Snape sitting between them. 

"Yeah, alright I can see it happening," Ron said as he took a sip of his pumpkin juice. 

"I suppose," Harry said reluctantly, not quite sure what to make of Hermione's hypothesis. 

~XXX~ 

Friday's Defense Against the Dark Arts class was quite interesting. Sirius spent much of the time answering questions about Azkaban and the Dementors. 

No one in the class though, could mull up the courage to ask Professor Black how he had managed to escape the prison two years earlier. They were, of course, all interested to know how he had done the impossible, but could not bring themselves to ask such an obviously personal question. Professor Black seemed to be avoiding the subject anyway. 

By the end of their first Defense Against the Dark Arts class, the students had been scared straight by his tales of dread and doom within the prison walls. Many continued talking on through lunch that afternoon with their ideas of what it would be like to be imprisoned there and, in hushed voices, they discussed the dilemma which had stumped the Ministry: how he had escaped. The speculations were just as sensational now as they had been two years ago. 

Harry, Ron and Hermione on the other hand, did not tread towards the subject of Azkaban or the Dementors at all. 

Ron and Hermione knew Harry's feelings on the Dementors and what effect they had on him. In the back of his mind, Harry heard his father (_Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!_), and his mother's plea for mercy before Voldemort murdered her, too. 

~XXX~ 

The only class left that week was Double Potions with every Gryffindor's least favorite instructor, Professor Snape. 

At the end of his fourth year, Harry had found out a great deal about Severus Snape. Various references to Snape's loyalty and Snape's final gesture of confession when showing his Dark Mark confirmed his previous suspicions that Snape was, or had been, a Death Eater. 

What was most surprising to Harry was that Snape, for reasons unbeknownst to anyone but Albus Dumbledore, had changed sides so to speak. Now, instead of pledging allegiance to Lord Voldemort, Snape's loyalty was with Dumbledore, same as Harry. 

Any chance of Harry and Professor Snape being on better terms now that Harry knew this was quickly dashed as the first Potions class of the year began. 

As usual, Harry, Ron and Hermione chose to sit as far back in the class as was possible, preferring to put as much distance between themselves and the sallow faced Potions Master as they could. 

They had just begun grounding the scarab beetles that would be used in their potion assignment when they heard Draco's drawling voice from a table full of Slytherins across the room. 

"My father is going to speak with Dumbledore about Kidrin's teaching methods," he said to Crabbe and Goyle, "He doesn't doubt that I'd be able to take her of course, but it's clearly unprofessional for a teacher to threaten a student." 

Harry turned to Ron and said quietly, "Yeah, right, like Snape doesn't threaten us at least twice a week." 

Ron nodded in agreement, "Kidrin didn't even threaten him. I don't see what the big deal is. Why did the git have to go off and cry to his father?" 

Hermione leaned in while sweeping her freshly ground beetles into her boiling cauldron. 

"I bet he's scared," she whispered, " Probably trying to get the whole thing called off so he doesn't have to look like a fool when she wins. Can you imagine what Professor Snape is gonna do when Slytherin loses fifty House Points?" 

"Do you really think she can do it though?" Ron asked skeptically, as he prepared to add his own beetles to his potion. "Man that would be ace. I'd love to see the look of disgust on Snape's ugly face..." 

"If you want to see a look of disgust on my face, Mr. Weasley," came Snape's voice from behind the trio, "you can take a good look right now as I am once again _disgusted_ that you have chosen my class as the meeting place for the Potter and Company Social Club." 

Ron's tray of ground beetles dropped from his grip crashing to the floor, scattering the fine powder everywhere. 

A horrified Ron shrank down and avoided looking back at Professor Snape. 

"Unlike Professor Kidrin, I do not allow students the opportunity to redeem themselves," Snape continued coldly, moving around to the front of their table so that he was now facing the three Gryffindors. "I prefer instead, to simply take the points directly. I find it saves everyone time that way." 

Snape leaned in close to Ron, who was now shaking under his menacing glare. 

"Gryffindors, please note that fifty points will be taken from your House for Mr. Weasley's blatant lack of respect." 

Snape smiled crookedly, revealing his yellowed teeth before moving his coal black eyes to Harry and Hermione. 

"And an additional fifty points will be deducted on each of your behalves," he added. 

"We didn't _do_ anything!" Harry exclaimed, knowing full well Snape did not _need_ a reason to take points from him. 

"Precisely," Snape spat, "The next time one of your _friends_ decides to berate a Professor, Potter, you will find it in your best interest to make sure they _bite their tongue_." 

"But…" Harry started before Snape interrupted him. 

"Twenty points from Gryffindor," Snape shot again, his eyes barring down on Harry intensely. 

"Professor, he didn't…" Hermione said, finally finding her voice. 

"Twenty more points from Gryffindor," Snape spat again, his eyes not leaving Harry's. 

Harry opened his mouth when Snape leaned in closer. 

"You have something else to add, Potter? Is your over-inflated ego worth another fifty points from your Housemates?" Snape's teeth were clenched as tight as Harry's fists. "Are you curious to find out whether it's possible to have a negative in House Points?" 

Snape straightened up and stepped back from their table, his eyes never moving from Harry's. 

Harry was glaring back, trying to find some hint of feeling from the man whom Dumbledore trusted so much, but there was none. All he saw, though, was the same malice and contempt that he had grown so accustomed to over the past four years. 

"No?" Snape continued, seeing Harry was not going to say another word, "What a shame." 

Without another word, Professor Snape returned to his desk, leaving them to work in silence. 

When Harry glanced in Draco's direction, he saw him and the rest of the Slytherins smirking. 

_"We'll see who's laughing on Monday, you slimy git",_ Harry thought to himself. 

~XXX~ 

After dinner that evening, Harry, Ron and Hermione were walking slowly back to the Gryffindor dormitory, when Fred and George Weasley, Ron's twin brothers, came up from behind them. Fred and George, both seventh year Gryffindors, were notorious for their love of jokes and general mischief. 

"Congrats Ron! You managed to be the first to lose Points for Gryffindor this term," George said, patting Ron on the back. 

"Yeah," Fred chimed in, "usually _we're_ the ones to get that honor." 

"That's not funny, you two," Hermione cut in. 

"Ah, Hermione, don't get shirty," Fred said noticing her disapproving expression, "Ron's a Weasley, after all. Getting into trouble is what we do best." 

"Last time I checked," she stated, "Ron was his own person, not just a 'trouble-making Weasley.'" 

Ron looked over at Hermione, puzzled as to the source of this newfound defense of his person. 

"Why Miss Granger," George said with an air of surprise, "Are you defending Ron's honor? How sweet." 

Ron finally spoke up, "Get lost, you two. Don't you have someone else to annoy?" 

"Hey Fred," George said to his twin, "Ya' get the feeling that a certain someone may fancy a certain someone else?" 

Ron stopped short, his lips pursed. Harry noticed Ron's face getting as red as his hair. 

"Put a sock in it!" he growled, clearly agitated. 

The group had all stopped walking and were standing in the middle of a deserted corridor. None of them seemed to have noticed that Professor Snape, who always seemed to appear out of thin air, had just entered the corridor and was watching the scene before him unfold. 

"By George! I think you're on to something George," Fred said, ignoring Ron, "Methinks a love may be blossoming here. And it seems like only yesterday our young Ron was running away from members of the opposite sex." 

Fred and George both stood back and stared at Ron like proud parents. 

With that, Ron reached inside his robes and pulled out his wand, pointing it directly at his stunned twin brothers. 

Harry and Hermione both jumped to grab Ron before he did something he would regret. 

Professor Snape, had been waiting for the chance to take more Points from Gryffindor. 

"_Ten? Twenty? No, let's just make it fifty points…_" the Potions Master thought to himself, as he started swiftly towards the group of Gryffindors. 

Before Snape had a chance to open his mouth, a stern voice came from behind him. 

"Put that wand away _this instant_, Mr. Weasley." 

Ron put his wand down at his side and the group turned quickly turned to see where the voice had come from. Professor Kidrin was storming up the corridor from behind Professor Snape, who was just as startled by the sudden outburst. 

She came to a halt before the students, her eyes blazing. 

"I may be new here, boys, but I'm quite sure that what was about to take place here is against school rules," she said, her voice harsher than they remembered from Monday's class. 

Ron glanced at his brothers and dropped his head in defeat. He hadn't intended to harm them. They had just hit a nerve he had not realized existed. 

"Now you can add the first detention of the year to your list of '_honors'_," she continued, glaring at Ron. Her eyes shifted slightly towards the twins as she continued, "An honor you will be sharing with your brothers." 

"Professor Kidrin, please don't blame Ron," Hermione pleaded, "It was my fault entirely. We were just…" 

Professor Kidrin put her hand up to silence Hermione and continued speaking to the three Weasley brothers. 

"The three of you will be serving your detentions tomorrow evening," Professor Kidrin continued, her voice softening slightly. 

All three of the Weasleys looked as if they had just been hit by a pile of bricks. 

"But Professor, tomorrow is Saturday!" Fred and George exclaimed in unison. 

"Seven o'clock tomorrow evening and I advise you all to be on time," she continued, ignoring them, "It would probably be wise for all of you to make your way back to your dormitories now. Goodnight." 

Without another word, the five Gryffindors turned and walked down the corridor in complete silence. 

Professor Kidrin watched as they turned the corner, disappearing from sight, then tuned back from where she had come. 

"Good evening, Professor Snape," she said, glancing his way as she strode past him down the corridor. 

Severus turned to follow her, matching her stride. 

"I must admit, Professor, I am quite impressed," he said, his voice showing no emotion. 

Jena sniggered slightly. 

"Funny, I don't see you as the type to be impressed with anything," she replied, keeping her eyes straight ahead as they walked. 

"I suppose I just assumed you would have 'challenged' them to some sort of silly task to avoid punishment," he sneered back, not liking her tone. 

"Ah, I see," she said, nodding her head in comprehension. Up until this moment, Severus had barely spoken more than two words to her since she had arrived at Hogwarts. Jena now knew where this newfound interest in conversing with her was coming from. 

"You don't approve of the way I handled Mr. Malfoy's issue," she said as she stopped walking. "Well, I can understand why. Being Head of Slytherin, you must surely be quite upset that your House will be losing those fifty points on Monday." 

Severus, who had stopped alongside her, turned to face her with a menacing gaze, which she met, unshaken. 

"I am not worried in the least in the ability of one of my most prized pupils," he growled, "I am however, disgusted that a Hogwarts Professor would willingly make a fool of themselves in front of the entire student body. 

"So, you do not believe that I will succeed then," she said with a slight grin, "Well then, I've got a proposition for you, Professor." 

"Go on," he said, attempting not to sound intrigued. 

"I'm sure Albus doesn't want to have to replace one of his most valuable teachers," she paused a moment before continuing, "and I'm afraid the way you're headed, you'll surely going to kill yourself." 

"What are you talking about, Professor?" he snarled back, "You know nothing about…" 

"The way you rush through meals, Severus," she interrupted, "I'm talking about your eating habits. No one else may have noticed, Professor, but I see the way you hurry through every meal, making excuses to leave before most of us have even taken a first bite." 

His eyes narrowed. 

"And I know why you do it," she continued calmly. "I'm perfectly aware that for whatever reason you do not seem to enjoy the company you keep at the table. Either myself or Sirius, or both of us… So what I'm proposing is a friendly wager, between the two of us." 

Severus was beginning to wonder why he had even began conversing with this woman as she continued, "If on Monday, Mr. Malfoy is successful in his 'mission', I will make sure that new seating arrangements are made immediately so that you may eat without distraction. Really, at the rate your going, Professor, you'll wither away to nothing in no time." 

Snape stared blankly at her a few moments before replying, "Well, I admit I am rather intrigued by the idea of dining without the childish interruptions. And being as my odds are so good…" 

His eyes narrowed further as a thought struck him, "And what do _you_ get if I, by some far-off chance lose this wager?" 

"Well, I'm afraid you may not like it, Professor," she said coolly. 

"Try me." 

"If I win, you will escort me on the first outing to Hogsmeade." 

The Potions Master scoffed at the thought of a day in Hogsmeade, let alone accompanying _her_. 

"You will spend an entire day visiting shops, eating, drinking, seeing the sites… basically just having _fun_," she said with a smirk. 

He cringed as the word _fun_ fell from her lips. 

"Very well, Professor" he said abruptly, "If it means I will finally get some much needed peace during meals." 

"Good. So we have a deal then," she said, with a mischievous grin. 

She held her hand to seal the pact, and he shook it quickly. 

"Well then, Professor Snape, if there is nothing else, I shall be retiring for the evening," she said, still grinning, "Good evening." 

She turned away from him and continued down the corridor without looking back. 

_"You'd best not fail Malfoy,"_ he thought to himself as he watched her disappear around the corner. 

~XXX~ 

As Jena made her way to her quarters, she thought of the events that had just transpired between herself and Severus. 

Sirius had given her his opinion of the temperamental Potions Master, which she of course knew was completely biased. 

"_True, he is a bit of a heel_," she thought as she approached the door to her quarters, "_but who can blame him?_" 

She reached into the pocket of her wool coat for the key to her room, when the door opened for her quickly. 

"Where have you been?" Sirius asked, sounding distressed. He held the door open so she could enter. 

Jena stepped across the threshold into a large circular room with two doors on either side of a large stone fireplace. A fire was roaring heartily, throwing dancing shadows over the room. 

"I told you I had to go see Hagrid," she replied, as she removed her coat and hung it on a hook by the door. 

"Well, I was just down to Hagrid's and he told me you left quite some time ago," he said, watching her collapse with exhaustion on the sofa. "I thought you had run into trouble. Wandering around and all…" 

Sirius poured her a cup of warm tea, which she accepted gratefully. 

"No, no trouble at all," she lied. She had decided, during her journey up to her room, that she certainly would not be telling him of her confrontation and wager she had made with Snape. 

She took a sip of her tea and glanced over to Sirius, who had taken a seat in a chair across from her. 

"Actually, I did have to reprimand some students on the way back," she added, noticing the suspicious look Sirius was shooting her way. "Detention tomorrow evening." 

Sirius relaxed his stare. "And who, pray tell, were the unlucky recipients?" he asked. 

"The Weasley brothers." 

Sirius rolled his eyes, having heard of their track record for trouble. "Fred and George Weasley…of course." 

"Actually, Fred, George and _Ron_ Weasley," she corrected him. 

He raised his brow slightly at the mention of Ron's name. 

"I believe that Ron and Miss Granger may fancy each other," she continued, "His brothers were teasing him about it." 

"You don't say?" 

"I think it's quite romantic, really," she said with a smile. "The young man defending her honor and all." 

Sirius leaned back in his chair with a thoughtful look. 

"Sounds like something James would've done," he sighed. 

Jena looked at him with a smile and nodded. 

"Yeah. Yeah, it does. They were happy, weren't they?" she said quietly, more as a statement than a question. 

~XXX~ 

Meanwhile, in the Slytherin Common Room, Draco Malfoy sat surrounded by his usual clique. 

"Did you notice the way Kidrin's always hanging around with Black?" Draco snarled, "I find it disgusting, really. To go from being hailed the Dark Lord's trusted steed to nothing more than a puppet to that Muggle lover." 

He shook his head in disgust, his group of cronies mimicking his revulsion. 

"I can't wait to see the look of terror on Kidrin's face when the Dark Lord comes," he continued, with a hateful glint in his eyes. "Her and the rest of those..." 

Malfoy's speech was suddenly interrupted by a flash from the fireplace. 

"Malfoy, my office. _Now!_" Snape's voice boomed through the Common Room, causing Draco's audience to break up. 

Although Professor Snape was Head of Slytherin, and showed an apparent favoritism to his own students, he was still able to strike a note of fear among them. 

Malfoy stood up swiftly, upon hearing his Head of House's commanding voice, and exited the Common Room. 

Snape was seated behind his desk when Draco arrived in his office. 

"Close the door, Mr. Malfoy," he said, standing from his chair. 

Draco closed the door as he was directed. Snape motioned to an empty chair facing his desk and Draco sat obediently. 

"I trust you've put some thought into your upcoming duel with Professor Kidrin?" Snape asked. 

"Well, sir, my father…" Draco started, before Snape interrupted him. 

"I hold a great deal of respect for Lucius," Snape said, forcing the statement out, "but due to circumstances beyond his control, he has yet to successfully show any type of influence over the goings on of this school. His attempt to have the Headmaster dismissed three years ago; the failed execution of that Higgogriff…which to his day, I know _Potter_ had something to do with." 

Snape's voice spate the last statement out with such loathing, Draco could not help but smirk. One of the reasons Draco held such high regards for his Head of House was his blatant hatred of Harry Potter. 

There were moments when Draco, secretly of course, that he held a higher respect for Snape than for his own father. Lucius was constantly reminding him to keep his feeling of malice towards the Boy Who Lived to himself. Snape, on the other hand, did not seem to mind Draco's outward loathing, as he himself was constantly vocalizing his feelings of contempt for Harry. 

"It has been my experience, that if you want results, you must take matters into your own hands," Snape continued, silkily, "Depend on no one, Malfoy. Not your father, not your friends, _no one_." 

Draco nodded as Snape's gaze dropped on him. 

"What do you suggest, Professor?" asked Draco. 

A glint came into Snape's eyes and Draco suddenly felt relieved that _he_ was not the object of this man's hatred.


	4. Chapter 04

Snafu - Chapter 4 

Saturday morning was ruined for Ron. All he kept thinking about was the upcoming evening's detention. Not even a second helping of Rum Raisin Pudding at dinner cheered him up. 

"I suppose I'll go to the library after dinner," Hermione said quietly, as Harry and Ron finished their desserts in silence. "You want to come with me, Harry?" 

Hermione felt responsible for Ron's upcoming detention and had not spoken a single word to him the entire day. Ron had been unusually quiet, and Hermione was afraid at how angry he must be with her. 

"Actually, I was thinking of visiting with Sirius after dinner," Harry replied. He took an absentminded sip from his mug of hot cocoa. "He obviously won't be distracted with Professor Kidrin, at least for awhile anyhow. You're welcome to come, too, if you'd like." 

Hermione snuck a quick glance Ron's way and saw he was not too happy about that idea at all. 

Ron had been dragging his spoon slowly through his pudding, and it had been spilling around the edges and sloshing around a bit more violently at Harry's invitation to Hermione. 

"No, Harry, you go ahead," Hermione said, moving her eyes back to Harry, "I should really get going on that History of Magic project Professor Binns assigned." 

Ron dropped his spoon onto his plate, splattering pudding on Neville Longbottom, who was conversing with Seamus next to him. 

"Don't deprive yourself of a fun-filled evening on my account," he said sarcastically, not looking at either of them, "Go with Harry and visit with Sirius. Talk. Laugh. Have a jolly good time." 

With that, Ron pushed his chair back from the table, stood up and stormed through a group of Hufflepuffs who were on their way out of the Great Hall, without so much as a goodbye. 

Harry turned back to Hermione who was eyeing the doors as if she wanted to burst through the crowd of students who were leaving and chase after Ron. 

"So you sure you don't want to come with me then?" Harry asked her, as if nothing had happened. 

Hermione's focus went from the doors, back to Harry. 

"No, I wouldn't feel right," she said. "It's my fault Ron's got detention tonight. I don't think it would be right of me to go off and have fun with him stuck like that." 

She pushed her chair back from the table and rose to leave. 

"Hermione, you think spending time in the blasted library is fun," Harry said casually, standing from the table himself. 

"You know what I mean," she replied with a look particular to a determined Hermione. 

"Well, suit yourself then," he said, shrugging his shoulders. 

Harry looked over to the Head Table, which was completely empty now except for Sirius and Professor Dumbledore, who were deep in conversation. 

"Don't worry about Ron," he continued, his eyes still on Sirius and Professor Dumbledore. "You know how he is. I'm sure he'll be back to his old self again tomorrow." 

Harry turned to Hermione but she was already gone, leaving him standing alone in the Great Hall with Sirius and Professor Dumbledore. 

~XXX~ 

Ron was standing in the corridor in front of Professor Kidrin's closed classroom door for thirty minutes before Fred and George sauntered up. 

"Whatcha doin' out here, Ron?" George asked. 

"Same thing as you," Ron mumbled back. 

"Well, let's get this over with, then," Fred said, starting towards closed door to the class. He quickly found the door was locked, and knocked on it gently. 

"Don't ya' think I've already tried that?" Ron snapped. 

"Well, what time is it?" Fred asked, looking annoyed. "Today IS Saturday isn't it? Are we supposed to wait here all night? There should be some kinda rule that if the host of the detention isn't on time, then the detention is cancelled." 

"SHH!" George hissed, his ear pressed against the door, "I think someone's in there." 

Fred quieted down and pressed his ear to the door beside George's. Ron watched them, trying to act uninterested. 

"What's that banging?" Fred whispered. 

"Maybe she's being attacked by that snake she's keeping in there," George whispered back, not moving his head from the door. 

"Ya' reckon we should help her?" Fred asked, still listening intently to the noise on the other side of the door. 

"Why? The bloody thing can swallow her whole if it means we can get out of a Saturday night detention," George shot back jokingly. 

Ron pushed both of his brothers away from the door and began pounding fiercely on it. 

"Professor Kidrin?" he called through the door, "Professor Kidrin, are you alright in there?" 

All three of the Weasley brothers took a step backwards as they heard one last loud bang and the sound of footsteps coming quickly towards the door. 

The classroom door opened with a sudden jerk, and Professor Kidrin stood before them, looking  
extremely frazzled. 

"Oh, I'm sorry boys," she said, moving aside so they could enter the classroom. "I guess I lost track of time. I was just sorting through some of the things I hadn't had a chance to unpack yet." 

She made her way back to the far side of the room where a closet door stood ajar. Ron got a quick glimpse inside at the vast assortment of boxes and trunks before Professor Kidrin closed the closet door. 

"Everything is such a mess," she continued, as she brushed the loose strands of hair from her flushed face. "What with moving and classes and I swear it's impossible to find your way around this blasted castle." 

Ron, Fred and George watched her with blank looks on their faces. Professor Kidrin stopped and took a deep breath, trying to compose herself. 

"Right then," she started again, her voice less frantic, "Let's get on with this. Fred and George, why don't you two have a seat here." She motioned toward the table in front own desk. "Ron, I'll need to speak with you separately. Would you mind waiting out in the corridor? This shouldn't take long." 

Fred and George took their seats while Ron turned and went back out to the corridor. Professor Kidrin quietly closed the door, leaving him alone in the deserted corridor with only his thoughts. 

Ron leaned against the cold stone wall outside the classroom wondering what Harry and Hermione were doing right now. He wished he had not acted like such a prat at dinner. 

"Hey, Ron, did she forget she gave you detention?" Harry's voice echoed in the quiet corridor. 

Ron looked up from the stone floor and saw Harry and Sirius coming up the corridor towards him. 

"She's in there with Fred and George," Ron replied, motioning to the closed classroom door. "I'm really beginning to think she's looney." 

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, grinning. He was glad to see Ron was actually speaking to him. 

"Get this," Ron started, keeping his voice low, "When we were waiting out here for her, we heard quite a racket coming from the classroom. Then she comes to the door looking like she'd just been through a storm or something. Her hair was going every which way." 

Sirius quickly pushed past Harry and Ron towards the door to Jena's classroom. 

"Is she alright? Who was in there with her?" Sirius asked, with a panicked tone. 

"Yeah, she's fine," Ron replied, "Apparently she was unpacking some boxes or something. Seems she was having some problems getting them out of the closet." 

"Damn. I forgot I put those in there," Sirius mumbled, "I did that before I knew she was going to Sanspell the room." 

"Sanspell?" Harry said, looking to Ron. 

Ron shrugged his shoulders, not being familiar with the term. 

"It's the charm that makes it so magic can't be used in her classroom" Sirius replied, still staring at the door. 

"So she's alright then?" he asked, tearing his eyes from the door to Ron. 

Ron nodded and moved his attention to Harry. 

"So where's Hermione?" he asked Harry. 

"She went to the library. Said she felt bad about your detention and didn't feel right having fun while you were stuck in detention," Harry replied. 

Ron smiled, feeling a bit better. 

"So you reckon we should go see Hagrid tomorrow?" Ron asked. "You know he'll probably be offended if we don't stop by and at least say hello." 

"It'll have to be in the afternoon. They rescheduled the Quidditch team meeting to tomorrow morning seeing as our two Beaters had detention tonight." 

"Oh, yeah right. Sorry about that," Ron said quietly. "Hey, I forgot to ask you. Who's Captain this year?" 

"Dunno," Harry replied, shrugging his shoulders. "I suppose they'll be making the announcement tomorrow. I'm hoping it's Angelina though. She'd make a great Captain. It's gonna seem strange not having Oliver breathing down our necks this year." 

Oliver Wood had been the Captain for the Gryffindor team ever since Harry had begun playing Quidditch four years ago. Wood had completed his seventh year at Hogwarts the year before last and even though Oliver had been famous for being a bit of a hard-nose at times, no one could deny that his enthusiasm for the game had definitely helped the Gryffindor team win the Quidditch Cup two years ago. 

"Well, no matter who the Captain is this year, Gryffindor is still the only House team with a Firebolt," Ron said enthusiastically. 

Both Ron and Harry looked over at Sirius, who had not been paying attention to their conversation. He had been pacing the floor nervously in front of Professor Kidrin's classroom. He stopped and looked up from the floor realizing the two boys had stopped talking. 

"What was that?" he asked, looking up at Ron to Harry. "Did you say something to me?" 

"Ron was just saying how lucky we are to have the Firebolt on the Gryffindor team," Harry replied, noticing more clearly that Sirius was acting more than a bit odd. 

"Oh, right. That's one helluva broom, the Firebolt," Sirius said. His mind was obviously on something else. 

Ron and Harry exchanged confused looks. Before Harry had a chance to ask Sirius what was wrong, Sirius turned to Ron. 

"So how long have they been in there?" Sirius asked Ron. 

"Guess about fifteen minutes or so. Not long before you got here," Ron replied. 

"What is this about?" Harry asked Sirius, clearly getting annoyed with his odd behavior. 

Before he could get an answer though, the door to Professor Kidrin's classroom opened quickly, and both Fred and George Weasley stepped out. 

"Harry," George said when he saw Harry and Ron standing in the corridor, "Think we can gather the team together? We can still have the Quidditch meeting tonight." 

"You're done with detention already?" Harry asked surprised. 

"Yeah. Man, she sure is a wicked one though," said Fred, with a hint of sarcasm. 

"I'll say," George chimed in. "She even confiscated our newest line of candy. We hadn't even had a chance to properly test them yet." 

"Well, we do have more, so we can try them out on some poor unsuspecting soul tonight," Fred said back, with a glint of mischief in his eyes. 

"After the Quidditch meeting then," George said, looking back to Harry. "So what do you say? Reckon we can gather up the troops now? That is, unless you've made other plans." 

"Do you mind if I go ahead then?" Harry asked, turning to where Sirius had been standing moments before, but he was gone. 

"He's in there," Ron said, gesturing towards Professor Kidrin's classroom. 

Harry rolled his eyes and turned back to the Weasley twins. 

"No, I've don't have any plans," Harry said, "Let's go." 

"Alright then, let's go find out who our new leader will be," Fred said valiantly. 

"Tell Sirius," Harry started to Ron, then shook his head. "Never mind, he probably won't even notice I'm gone anyway. See ya' back in the Common Room then?" 

"Yeah, see ya'," Ron replied quietly. 

Ron watched as Harry, Fred and George walked down the corridor and disappeared around the corner. He desperately wished he was going with them right now. 

Ron peeked through the door, into the classroom, wondering if he was supposed to go in. 

He saw Professor Kidrin standing in the doorway of the closet she had been in earlier. 

"Sirius, really, this can wait until later," Ron heard Professor Kidrin say into the closet. 

"Well, I'm here now so let me get these sorted out," Sirius replied from inside the closet. 

Ron heard the banging of boxes and trunks being shifted around. 

"You're right, Sirius," Jena said, entering the closet as well. 

The banging of the boxes stopped, and Ron saw Sirius being pushed gently out of the closet by Professor Kidrin. 

"And you'll be here tomorrow, and the day after that, and the day after that." Jena continued steering Sirius towards the classroom door. "Honestly. You're like a fungus that just won't go away," she said, only half kidding. 

Ron had slipped his head back around the corner of the door before they reached him. He watched quietly, as Sirius was reluctantly pushed gently through the door into the corridor. 

"Ah-ha! So you admit it then. I am a fungi," Sirius said with a grin. "Get it? Fungi, fun guy." 

Jena rolled her eyes and dismissed him with a wave of her hand. 

"Yeah, yeah, I get it," she said. 

Professor Kidrin turned to Ron, who had been watching them quietly. 

"Mr. Weasley," she said, "would you mind finding a seat?" 

She moved aside and let Ron by as she grabbed hold of the door to close it. 

"Now, Sirius, if you don't mind I have work to do," she said, closing the door before Sirius could  
interrupt her again. 

Ron was sitting at the same table where Fred and George had been earlier. He listened nervously as her footsteps became louder, making their way to where he was sitting. She stopped in front of her desk and leaned on it, facing Ron. 

"Now, Ron, you do understand why you are here this evening?" she asked. 

Ron nodded squeamishly. 

"Yes, Professor," he answered, trying to avoid her critical glare. Ron knew perfectly well that students were prohibited from doing magic in the corridors of the castle. 

"Professor, with all due respect, I didn't actually use magic in the corridor," Ron said timidly. 

"I am well aware of that," she said plainly, "You are here because what I saw was quite distressing to me." 

She straightened up and began walking slowly back and forth in front of Ron. 

"For a wizard to pull their wand in an offensive attack as you did was bad enough in and of itself," she said while pacing. "But to do so against your own flesh and blood..." 

Her voice trailed off and Ron finally looked up at her. He noticed she looked overtaxed. Her blue eyes, which had been full of life at the start of the week, now seemed wearisome. 

"I wasn't going to do anything, Professor. Honest," he said matter-of-factly. 

"You come from a close knit family do you not?" she asked, stopping and stooping down in front of the table where he was sitting, so that they were now at eye level. 

"Yes, I suppose we get along as well as any family can," he replied. 

"Well, I just want to make sure you don't take that for granted, Ron. You are very lucky, you know. Many people grow up without any family." 

Ron's thoughts immediately went to Harry and how he had lost his parents when he was only a year old. 

"So the next time you feel the urge to pull your wand on one of your siblings," she continued softly, keeping her eyes on him, "think about what your life would be like without them." 

_Hmmm. Life without Fred and George bothering me. Life without Percy constantly getting on my nerves with his superior attitude…_ he thought to himself. 

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the classroom door opening. Ron glanced back to the door and saw Sirius sticking his head in. 

"Sorry to interrupt," Sirius said, looking to Jena. "I was just getting hungry and was wondering if you wanted to come with me to the kitchen to get a bite." 

"Sirius, I'm in the middle of something here," Jena sighed with annoyance. 

"I just figured maybe you'd be finishing up here and -" Sirius started before Jena cut him off. 

"I'll be done when I'm done," she groaned, reaching over to her desk and picking something up. She tossed the small object to Sirius. 

"What's this?" he asked, looking down at what he had just caught. 

"A little something to tide you over until I'm done here," Jena replied calmly, "They're quite good. Now if you'll please close the door on the way out, I'll be sure to let you know when I'm done here." 

Sirius closed the door and Ron turned back to Professor Kidrin. 

"Professor, I -" Ron started. 

Professor Kidrin put her finger to her lips to quiet him. 

"Hang on just a minute," she said slowly, with a mischievous grin. 

Ron sat in silence for a few seconds when suddenly 

"AAAAHHHHHH!" Sirius' voice boomed from outside the door. 

"Oh, this should be good," Jena giggled. 

She made her way back to the classroom door and opened it quietly. Ron watched curiously as Professor Kidrin stepped into the corridor out of his sight. 

"Everything alright there, Sirius?" she called across the corridor. 

"What the bloody hell was that?!" Sirius yelled back. 

Jena came back into her own classroom and looked over to Ron, who was utterly confused, and gave him a playful wink. 

"What do you mean?" she called back to Sirius innocently. 

Ron heard the sound of more than one set of footsteps making their way towards their classroom. 

What Ron saw next was an image that he would remember for years to come. He watched, his eyes nearly popping out of his head, as Sirius entered the room. Well, actually, half of Sirius. 

Ron knew right away exactly what had happened. Apparently, unbeknownst to himself, Sirius had just become a guinea pig to one of Fred and George Weasley's joke candy treats. 

Sirius still had his own head, but everything below his neck was one hundred percent donkey. 

Ron tried to stifle his laughter as he watched Sirius trot across the classroom, and come to a halt in front of Professor Kidrin. 

"You know exactly what I mean," Sirius growled, trying to sound angry. His new donkey tail swished as he stomped one of his hind hooves. 

This sight was enough to make Jena burst out in tears of laughter. 

"I'm sorry, Sirius," she cried, wiping tears from her eyes. "Really I am. I just couldn't resist." 

She ran her hand along his hairy back and slapped his rear end. 

"Well, it seems I've made quite an ass out of you doesn't it?" she said playfully. "Get it? Ass, donkey." 

"Touche', Professor," he stated scathingly, before stepping back towards the door. "Would you like the door closed on my way out?" he asked. 

"Yes, please." 

"Well, you'll have to do it yourself then," he retorted, "Being as I HAVE NO HANDS!" 

With that he clomped his hooves and trotted back across the corridor to his own classroom. 

After closing the door, Professor Kidrin walked back to her desk, sat down and looked at Ron, a smile still on her face. 

"Let your brothers know that their candies are magnificent," she said, "Now where were we?" 

Ron, feeling more relaxed with Professor Kidrin, replied, "You were telling me not to take my family for granted, Professor." 

"Right then. So you do understand what I'm getting at? Family is very important, Ron. No more pulling your wand on your brothers even if they are pains in your backside." 

Ron nodded. 

"Good. Now that we've got that settled. I need to ask you for your help with something," Professor Kidrin said, her voice taking a more serious tone, "It's about this little duel I've got coming up with Draco Malfoy." 

Ron's face scrunched up, "Sure, Professor, but how can I help you?" 

"I need you to tell me about Draco," she said, "What is he like?" 

"Draco Malfoy is a slimy, no good Muggle-hating git," he blurted out. 

"And he's a Slytherin," he added as an afterthought. 

Professor Kidrin looked a bit taken aback by Ron's last statement. 

"You say Slytherin like it's a bad thing." 

"Well, yeah," Ron said, as if stating the obvious, "They are an evil lot, Professor." 

"Ambition and cunningness," she replied casually, "are hardly evil traits, Mr. Weasley." 

"Draco Malfoy hates Muggles, Professor," he said back, "His whole family does. Anything, or anyone for that matter, that has anything to do with Muggles is inferior in their eyes." 

"So you believe that the Malfoys judge an entire group of people based on a small percentage of supposedly 'inferior' ones?" 

Ron nodded. 

"Well then, Ron, it seems perhaps you may have more in common with young Draco than you'd realized," she said with a sly grin. "Here you are judging an entire Hogwarts House, Slytherin, based on the actions of a select few." 

Ron went rigid. He was none too happy in the least with being compared to Draco. 

Jena could see that Ron was not about to accept the fact that the terms Slytherin and evil were not synonymous. 

"Do you know who Kenneth Copperton is?" she asked him. 

Ron shook his head, not recognizing the name. 

"I believe he completed his seventh year at Hogwarts in the late fifties," she said. "He owns a chain of very successful pubs in Northern Ireland. He's now making more galleons a week then you could shake a stick at." 

"What about Natalia Harplin?" she asked. 

Again, Ron shook his head. 

"She owns a busy and profitable seamstress shop in downtown London. Makes the most magnificent gowns you'd ever lay eyes on," she said with enthusiasm, "Natalia was commissioned by the Queen herself for the Princess of Wales' wedding gown. She finished her last term at Hogwarts in 1973, I believe." 

"And then there's Morgan Charmlin, Frank Torkson, Marley Plimptionall very successful in their own rights and good people to boot," she continued, "And do you know what all these people have in common, Ron?" 

"They're all Slytherins?" Ron said meekly, not liking were this was going. 

"They all attended Hogwarts and they were all of them in Slytherin," she said with a glint in her eye. "You see, Ron, it's not the ambitious or cunning nature - which is what the Sorting Hat sees - that determines whether or not a witch or wizard is evil. It's how those traits are focused. It's the choices that a person makes in their life is what determines whether or not they are 'bad'. Do you understand?" 

"I suppose," Ron answered, looking perplexed. 

"Well, I don't expect you to run out of the class hugging the first Slytherin student you see in the corridor," she said with a grin, "Just keep what I said in mind." 

"He'll probably cheat somehow," Ron said, going back to Professor Kidrin's original question about Draco. 

"He and Harry had a duel in our second year," Ron explained. "The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Gilderoy Lockhart -" Ron grimaced, remembering how much of a complete idiot Lockhart had been, "started a Dueling Club, and Malfoy and Harry went up against each other. Malfoy started spewing spells before he was supposed to, that filthy cheat." 

"Well, it sounds like I'm going to have to be on my toes then," she said almost to herself. 

Professor Kidrin stood up slowly from her seat. 

"I suppose we've had enough detention time now," she said, looking at her watch. "My goodness, is it that late already? What do you say we call it a night then." 

Ron stood up and walked with Professor Kidrin to the classroom door, which she opened for him. 

"And, Mr. Weasley," she said, before he stepped into the corridor, "please don't do anything else that would require me to give you another Saturday detention. Even professors need a day off." 

Ron looked at her and saw that she was smiling. 

"Yes, Professor," he replied, returning the smile, and walked out the door. 

Ron was feeling better now that the detention he had been dreading was finally over and done with. As he made his way back to the Gryffindor Common Room, he was in a much happier state of mind than a student who had just had a Saturday detention should have been. 

Once Ron had left, Jena locked up her own classroom and went across the corridor to Sirius'. She poked her head in and saw Sirius, now minus the donkey body, sitting behind his desk, reading. 

"You mad at me, Professor Black?" she asked coyly. 

Sirius looked over the book he had been pretending to read with a stern look. 

"I should be furious with you," he said, rising from the desk. "But I'll let it slide this time." 

"You know you deserved it really," she replied coyly, watching him make his way towards her at the doorway. "I mean really, do you have to stand over me twenty four hours a day, seven days a week? Keep it up and people will begin to gossip." 

After Sirius secured the door to his classroom for the night, he turned to Jena with a grin, and whispered in her ear, "They already are." 

"What do you mean?" she asked him suspiciously. 

As the two Professors made their way slowly through the quiet corridors of the castle, Sirius recounted the conversation he had had with Harry after dinner that evening. 

By the time they had arrived at their shared quarters, Jena had heard everything about Hermione Granger's belief that Jena and Sirius were together. 

"They think what?" she exclaimed in horror, stopping in the doorway of their quarters. 

"You heard me," Sirius replied, dropping into a red leather Chesterfield chair, with a mischievous grin. 

Jena entered the room and closed the door behind her. It was quite clear by the look on her face, that she did not find these rumors of a torrid love affair between the two of them the least bit funny. 

"The last thing I need right now are my students thinking we're..." she paused and grimaced at the thought of what she was about to say. 

"I need some tea," she said quickly, trying to get the image of her and Sirius out of her head. 

Jean walked over to the mahogany serving cart, which had been brought up earlier in the evening by one of the Hogwarts House Elves. She picked up a kettle of water from the cart and placed it in the fireplace to warm before turning back to Sirius. 

"You did set him straight, didn't you?" she asked him desperately. "Harry, I mean. You _did_ tell him we don't have that kind of relationship, didn't you?" 

Sirius just stared at her, afraid of what was coming. 

"Sirius..." she raised her voice slightly, as if scolding a child. 

"What was I supposed to do?" Sirius shot back. "Tell him the truth? He would have started spewing questions like a fountain. I assumed you'd have wanted me to simply leave him believing what he did. Was I wrong?" 

Jena's face softened in defeat. 

"No, I suppose not," she said quietly, turning back to the kettle in the fireplace, which had just begun to whistle. 

Jena grabbed a porcelain cup from the serving cart and poured the steaming hot water, which had magically become tea, into it. She carried it slowly over to the chair where Sirius was seated. 

"Be careful, it's quite hot," she said, carefully handing him the cup. 

She walked back to the cart and poured herself a cup of tea. 

"Still, I don't really like the idea of Harry Potter thinking I'm bonking his godfather," she continued disapprovingly, while taking a seat on the sofa across from Sirius. 

"Jena," Sirius started, his voice less playful than she was used to hearing, "there's something I need to tell you. I don't want you to worry though. I just think you should be aware..." 

Jean was blowing on her hot tea, attempting to cool it off. 

"What now?" she asked, rolling her eyes, "No wait. Don't tell me. Everyone thinks I'm pregnant, and me and you are getting married next week, and they all want to be a part of the wedding party," she said jokingly, taking a sip from her cup. 

"Lucius Malfoy was here today," Sirius said quietly, as if he were almost afraid to say it aloud. 

Before he could stop it, the porcelain cup she was holding slipped through her fingers and dropped to the stone floor, shattering. Jena stood up slowly, with a look on her face as if she were in a trance. Sirius meanwhile, pulled out his wand from inside his robes. He mumbled something, and the shards of the broken porcelain cup rose from the floor and reassembled themselves, before gently settling on the marble table in front of the sofa. 

Sirius watched Jena cautiously as she walked silently back to the fireplace and stood, staring into the fire. 

When she finally spoke, her voice seemed a bit choked. 

"When was he here?" she asked, her eyes not leaving the flames. 

"This afternoon," Sirius replied, "he came to see Albus. I didn't see him myself, Albus told me about it after dinner this evening." 

He sat for a moment in silence and watched as Jena's hand grasped the necklace the she always wore around her neck. She held the bright gold charm that hung from the chain and was flipping it as he knew she often did when she was nervous. 

Sirius rose from his chair and stood next to her by the warm fire. 

"He was trying to get Albus to have your duel with Draco stopped," he continued quietly. 

Jena's eyes left the fire as she looked over at Sirius standing beside her. 

"That's all?" she asked with relief. 

"Pretty much," Sirius said, "Albus told Lucius that he wasn't going to interfere in the matter. Lucius wasn't too happy about that. He left in a big hurry. Wouldn't surprise me if he's going to try and have Albus removed as Headmaster again. That'll never happen though. With Voldemort's rumored rising, no one will dare do anything to Albus." 

Jena nodded and continued playing with her necklace. Sirius reached over and touched her hand gently, and she released the charm from her grip. 

"Hey," he whispered, pulling her chin up so their eyes met, "I don't want you worrying." 

"I'm not worried," she lied, pulling herself from his gaze. "It just took me by surprise that's all." 

Jena moved from her place in front of the fire, and glanced to the door of her bedroom. 

"Listen," she said, turning back to Sirius, "it's been a really long week and I could use a long soak in a warm bath. You wouldn't mind if I say goodnight now would you?" 

Sirius watched her warily, as she made her way to her bedroom. 

"I suppose not," he replied. "Are you sure you're alright, Jena?" 

"Yes, I'm fine, Sirius," she said, "I'm just tired, that's all." 

"Alright then, but if you need anything" 

Jena turned to face Sirius in the doorway of her bedroom before closing the door. 

"I know where to find you," she said, feigning a smile, "Goodnight." 

She closed the door to her room leaving Sirius standing alone with nothing but the sound of the crackling fire. 


	5. Chapter 05

Snafu - Chapter 5 

The Great Hall was bustling Monday morning as the excited students discussed the upcoming duel between Malfoy and Professor Kidrin when Harry, Ron, and Hermione arrived for breakfast. 

"Draco doesn't look so great this morning," Ron observed aloud, taking his seat at the Gryffindor table. 

Harry glanced back to the Slytherin table and saw that Draco was unusually quiet as he ate that morning.

"Sirius told me his father was here on Saturday afternoon trying to have it stopped," Harry replied, reaching across the table for a warm pumpkin muffin. 

"Speaking of Sirius, did you tell him the good news yet?" Ron asked, as he attempted to spread a messy glob of strawberry jam on his toast. 

Harry had decided that he was no longer going to go out of his way to try to get Sirius's attention. It had become very clear to him that his godfather's affections lay with Jena Kidrin. 

"Nah," said Harry matter-of-factly, "I suppose he'll find out I'm Quidditch Captain when we play our first game." _Assuming he even shows up, he added to himself. _

"When's the first game?" Ron asked through a mouthful of jam and toast. 

"The twenty-eighth. Two weeks from Saturday. We're going against Slytherin," Harry replied. "Kinda earlier than usual for the start of the season. I just hope we can be ready by then," he added, with a slight hint of nervousness. 

Ron dismissed Harry's uneasy tone with a wave. "C'mon, Harry, look at what you've done in the past four years. Quidditch Captain will be just another notch on your belt." 

Harry was glad Ron was being so supportive of him. Due to Ron's past streaks of jealousy, Harry had almost been afraid to tell his best friend that he'd been made Gryffindor's Captain. 

"Well, I'm glad _you're_ so confident," Harry said wiping his mouth with a napkin, "Still, I think I'll send an owl to Oliver. I could use some advice from someone experienced with all this." 

Harry tossed his napkin down lightly onto his empty plate and stood from the table. 

"Harry, we've got class in twenty minutes," Hermione piped in, looking up from the book she had been quietly reading. 

"It'll only take a minute," Harry said. "I can easily make it to the owlery, write a quick note and be back in plenty of time." 

"Don't forget, we're meeting Professor Kidrin at the entrance doors today, not the classroom," Hermione called, as Harry hurried away. 

Ron watched Harry exit through the doors of the Great Hall then turned back to Hermione, who had gone back to reading her book. 

"You think Harry's all right, Hermione?" he asked, taking a quick sip of hot cocoa. 

The cocoa was hotter than Ron had expected and he pulled the mug away from his mouth quickly, causing a bit of it to spill down the front of his robes. He looked up to see if Hermione had witnessed his clumsiness, but, to his relief, she still had her face buried in her book. 

"Well, he's clearly jealous that Sirius is so enthralled with Professor Kidrin," she stated, without looking up from her reading. She turned a page in her book and continued, "It's really no more attractive coming from Harry than it was coming from you." 

Ron, who had been frantically trying to dry the wet spot the cocoa had left on his robes, looked up with surprise. 

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" he asked shortly. 

Hermione looked over her book at him, but remained silent. 

While Ron knew she was talking about last term's incident with Viktor Krum, he was certainly not about to acknowledge it. 

He stood up abruptly and Hermione slammed her book closed. 

"Now, where are _you_ going?" she asked, assuming he was upset with her for bringing up the jealousy subject. 

"I've got to change my robes," Ron mumbled back. 

Hermione watched him throw his napkin down on the table and push in his chair abruptly. 

"And yes, I know I've got fifteen minutes 'til class starts, and yes, I know we're supposed to meet and the entrance doors, so you can save your breath, _mother_." 

With that, Ron turned and walked off, trying to cover the wet spot on his robes as he passed the other House tables. 

_I wonder if he knows how cute he is when he's frustrated_, she thought with a grin, watching him exit the Great Hall. 

XXX 

Harry had decided to take the route past Sirius's classroom on his way back from the owlery. When he arrived at the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, he found the door was closed and there was a note tacked on it. 

_To the Fourth Year Defense Against the Dark Arts Students: _

_Today's class will be meeting on the lawn outside the main entrance. _

_Signed, Professor S. Black_

Harry's heart leapt as he finished reading the notice Sirius had left for his fourth-years. 

"Excellent," he said excitedly, forgetting his vow to himself to be nonchalant when it came to his godfather. 

Hoping to catch a minute with Sirius before class, Harry started at a quick sprint down the corridor. He was imagining how excited Sirius would be when Harry told him his news about becoming Quidditch Captain, when he turned the corner and… BANG! 

Harry fell backwards with a jolt, his glasses knocked from his face. He felt around the floor for them and promptly slid them back on, looking up to see what or whom he had just hit. 

Staring back at him with a befuddled look on her own face was Professor Kidrin, who like himself, had fallen backwards onto the cold stone floor. 

Harry noticed she was wearing the same long wool coat she had had on the night she had given the Weasley's detention, leading him to believe she must have just come from outdoors. 

Before Harry had a chance to register what had just happened, he saw Addie, Professor Kidrin's snake, wrap around her arm and make its way up to her shoulder, where it settled comfortably around her neck. 

_Well, aren't you going to say 'excuse me'?_ Harry heard a voice similar to the one he had heard in Muggle Studies class the previous week and now realized it had been Addie he had heard. 

"Excuse me," both Harry and Jena said to each other in unison. 

They each got to their feet and Harry brushed himself off quickly. 

"It was my fault entirely, Professor," Harry started quickly, "I was just trying to hurry to talk to Siri…Professor Black and I wasn't paying attention…" 

Harry's voice dropped off as he noticed the odd look on Professor Kidrin's face. She was gazing at him as if seeing Harry for the first time. 

"Professor?" Harry said nervously, wondering just how hard he had knocked her. "Professor Kidrin, are you alright? Do you need me to take you to the hospital wing?" 

Harry held out his arm, ready to escort the Muggle Studies Professor to Madam Pomfrey. 

Professor Kidrin shook the dazed look from her face. "No, no. I'm fine. Just threw me for a loop," she replied, quietly. 

She glanced down at her watch before continuing, "Oh my, five minutes until class. I'd better get Addie back. You'll let everyone know I'll be there shortly?" 

Before waiting for Harry to reply, Professor Kidrin continued down the corridor towards her own classroom. 

Once safely inside her classroom, Jena closed the door and made her way to the glass tank while unwrapping Addie from around her neck. 

_Now that wasn't so bad, was it? _

"I don't know what you're talking about," Jena replied, laying the snake gently down into the tank. 

"I don't know why you're so nervous. The boy seems perfectly content. He has his godfather back, friends who care about him and you said he's now Quidditch Captain for his House. What more could a fifteen year old wizard want?" 

"His parents, for one," Jena shot back as she tossed a mouse into the tank for the Adder snake to devour. 

XXX 

When Harry finally made it to the main doors of the castle, he found the area void of any students except Ron and Hermione. 

"Where is everybody?" Harry asked Ron, who, along with Hermione, was staring out the window towards the front lawn. 

"Out there," Ron replied, pointing out the window. 

Harry squeezed in between Ron and Hermione so that he could get a look. 

"What's Snape doin' here?" Harry asked, once he got a look out the window. 

Across the lawn, they could see Professor Snape speaking with Draco. Malfoy appeared to be listening intently to his Head of House, nodding his head as Snape spoke. 

"Well, come on then," said Harry, heading to the door, "I want to see Sirius." 

"We're supposed to wait by the door," Hermione called to the two boys, but Harry and Ron had already gone out. 

Hermione gave a quick look around the main hall for any sign of Professor Kidrin, but she was nowhere to be seen. 

"Oh, honestly," she mumbled, and she too went out the door. 

"Professor Kidrin specifically told us to wait by the doors," Hermione said as she caught up with them. 

"She told me to tell everyone she'd be coming along shortly," Harry said has he continued at a quick pace towards Sirius and his group of Defense Against the Dark Arts students, "and seeing as how everyone is already outside…." 

"When was this?" Hermione asked, surprised. 

"I ran into her in the corridor a few moments ago," Harry answered, flatly. 

Sirius, who had been pacing the area waiting for Jena, noticed the three Gryffindor students heading his way. 

"Good morning, Harry," Sirius said as they came to a halt before him. "Ron, Hermione, how are you doing this morning?" He gave each of them a nod and smiled. 

"Good morning, Siri…" Ron started before Hermione nudged him firmly with her elbow. 

"Good morning, _Professor Black_," Hermione said, stressing the words so that Ron would take a hint. 

"What are you doing here?" Harry asked. 

"Thought it would be an interesting demonstration for my fourth years to see," he replied, "And I'm glad I'm here." 

Harry followed Sirius's gaze a short way over to where Professor Snape and Draco were standing. Snape appeared to be giving a nervous-looking Malfoy some last minute instructions… or perhaps, an ultimatum. 

"Does Colin have that bloody camera surgically implanted around his neck?" Ron asked, noticing Colin Creevey, a fourth year Gryffindor standing with the group from Sirius' class. 

Harry chuckled, being all too familiar with Colin's constant photographing of everything. 

"Ah, here we go," said Sirius as something behind Harry caught his attention. "Will you excuse me?" 

They each turned and saw that Professor Kidrin had just come from the castle and was making her way towards the awaiting crowd. 

"I know, I'm late," she said quickly as Sirius approached her. 

"Actually, you're right on time," he replied, trying to keep up with her quick pace. 

"You brought your class out, I see," she said as the two made their way towards the awaiting students. 

Jena slowed her steps and surveyed the large group on the lawn. 

"I thought it would be a good demonstration for them to watch," Sirius lied. 

"Uh-huh," she mumbled, knowing full well that he was using this as an excuse to keep an eye on her. She made a mental note to talk with Albus about Sirius' duties. 

"Besides, they're not all mine," he continued as they stopped a short distance from the awaiting students. "Seems Snape decided he needed to bring his entire Potions class down this morning." 

Sirius glanced suspiciously Snape's way as the Potions Master continued his conversation with the young Malfoy, neither of whom gave any notice of Kidrin's arrival. 

"Well, he's got a lot riding on this you know," Jena replied, as she, too, glanced their way. 

"Fifty points hardly seems reason enough for that bloke to emerge from his dungeonous tomb," Sirius grunted. 

Jena grinned mischievously, knowing that Snape was more likely present this morning because of their private bet. 

_He really doesn't want to go to Hogsmeade with me, she thought to herself. _

"You're horrible, Sirius," she smirked. 

Professor Kidrin approached the anxious group of students before her. 

"Good morning, class," she started, and a few students mumbled a "good morning" back to her. "We have a few guests joining us today. Professor Black's Defense Against the Dark Arts students are here as well as Professor Snape's Potions class. I would like to welcome you all." 

The students gathered in closer around Professor Kidrin as she continued speaking. 

"Now this will be very similar, I believe, to a Wizard's Duel, which many of you are familiar with, I assume." 

Some of the students nodded; many of them had been present during the duel between Harry and Draco three years earlier. 

"All right, I will need you to part and give Mr. Malfoy and myself ample room to work," she continued and the students began to fall back away from her. "I will advise you that you would probably be smart not to stand directly behind me. A semi-circle is best I believe. We don't need anyone being hit by Mr. Malfoy's spells when they miss me," she grinned and a few of the students (none of which were Slytherins, of course) sniggered. 

After the students had formed a human arc, Professor Kidrin surveyed the set up and nodded in approval. 

"Perfect. Now, Mr. Malfoy, if you would be so kind as to join me," she waved towards Draco who was standing, along with Professor Snape, behind the formation of students. 

Draco looked to Snape, who nodded his approval, and Draco joined the Muggle Studies Professor in the center. 

"Now, I myself am not entirely familiar with the exact process of a Wizard's Duel, so I'll run through how this particular duel will go," she started, "Mr. Malfoy and myself will stand center here facing each other. After bowing, we shall both take our stances and on the count of three, Mr. Malfoy, you will attack." 

Draco nodded in comprehension. 

"Wonderful. Now before we begin, does anyone have any questions?" she looked to the silent students, some of which shook their heads. 

The sound of someone clearing his throat came from behind Malfoy, and Snape stepped forward. 

"Shouldn't you show the students that you are, in fact, unarmed, Professor?" he asked with a smirk. "We wouldn't want anyone accusing you of foul play." 

"That's not necessary, Snape," Sirius shot out defensively, "If anyone should be checked out, it's your student." 

Professor Kidrin put her hand up to Sirius to silence him. 

"No, no, he's right, Professor Black" she said, removing her coat under which she wore a black bodysuit. Anyone with eyes could see at that moment that there was absolutely no place to hide a wand, or any type of weapon, for that matter. She tossed the wool coat to the ground and raised her arms into the air. "Go on then, Professor, do your search." 

Snape stepped forward, pulling his wand from under his cloak. 

"_Accio," he said, pointing his wand at her. _

Jena winced as he spoke the words to the Summoning Charm. 

Harry remembered how Mrs. Weasley had used this same charm on Fred and George when they had tried to smuggle their candies to the Quidditch World Cup the summer before last. All of their hidden treats had jumped from the twins' hiding spots: their pockets, the lining of their jackets and the cuffs of their trousers when she had used it on them. Much to Snape's dismay, though, nothing came from Professor Kidrin. 

"Satisfied, Professor?" Jena asked, putting her arms back down at her sides. 

Snape did not reply, instead returning to his place behind Malfoy wearing a scowl on his sallow face. 

"Professor Snape, so as I'm not to be accused of any underhandedness, why don't you do the count for us?" 

Snape nodded and Jena put her attentions back to Draco. She bowed graciously to her opponent, as was customary before a duel, and Malfoy followed suit. 

"Wand at the ready," Snape snapped and Malfoy took his stance, his wand cocked back. 

Jena stood still and looked into Malfoy's eyes. 

_I wonder if he has Lucius's eyes, she thought to herself. The eyes that were staring back at her were cold, grey and full of spite. Jena felt a surge of malice inside herself - a feeling that was foreign to the young Professor. _

Snape began to count down. 

"One." Jena saw Malfoy's grip on his wand tighten. 

"Two." His brow furrowed deeper, a look of extreme concentration on his face. 

"Three." 

It all happened so quickly, no one who witnessed the duel was able to accurately describe what had occurred, when they relayed the event to other students later that day. 

Draco had not even gotten through the first syllable of his spell, "_Furn…_" before Professor Kidrin reacted. 

She kicked one leg up knocking Draco's wand from his grasp before spinning in a complete circle on her grounded leg, catching Malfoy behind the back and knocking him, on his back to the ground with a great force before landing on him. 

Kidrin's left forearm was positioned across the boy's neck, keeping him pinned tightly to the ground. 

_Bloody hell, she's gonna kill me, he thought as he gasped for air, the pressure of her arm tightening on his neck. _

Straddling him Jena leaned down, her mouth next to his ear. 

"I would love to see your father's face when he hears about this," she whispered coolly to the stunned young Malfoy. 

Draco did not respond though, his eyes were now fixated on the gold charm hanging from Professor Kidrin's necklace, which had fallen from under her bodysuit as she bent down over him. He recognized the markings on the charm. 

Colin Creevey had moved from his position on the sidelines and was now standing where Jena had had her back before the attack. 

Jena took the arm that was over Malfoy's neck and tilted his head up violently, removing his gaze from the charm. She pushed his head back so that all he could see was an inverted Colin Creevey ready to snap a photograph. 

"Smile for the camera, Draco," she said as she put on her most brilliant smile and the camera flashed. 

Jena immediately removed herself from the fallen Slytherin student and stood up, replacing her necklace under her bodysuit. She casually brushed a few blades of grass from her legs and held her hand out to assist Draco off the ground. 

Malfoy, of course, refused any assistance from his Muggle Studies Professor. He stood up, adjusted his robes and rubbed his neck, which was throbbing. 

None of the onlookers seemed to have noticed what had just occurred being as their backs had been to the crowd. 

Professor Kidrin turned back to the group of students who were now moving in closer to the pair. 

"Alright then, those of you who are in my class, you have the rest of the time to yourselves. I think we've had plenty of excitement for one morning," Professor Kidrin announced to her class, trying to catch her breath. 

Pansy Parkinson approached Draco, holding his wand, which she had retrieved from the ground. 

"She cheated, Draco. I'm sure Professor Snape will take care of it," she said as she handed him his wand. He grabbed it from her without a word. 

Draco glanced Snape's way. 

_Maybe I'd best tell Snape first. He'll know what to do_, he thought to himself. The look on the Snape's face told Draco now would not be a good time to go to him with his finding. 

The irate Potions Master was instructing his own group of students to get back to the dungeons. 

"Weasleys," Snape spat to Fred and George, "playtime is over. I suggest you make your way back to class before I start deducting points from both of you." 

Both Fred and George congratulated Professor Kidrin on her victory, before trudging across the lawn to the castle. 

"Where are you going?" Pansy asked Malfoy as he walked away. 

Draco did not answer, but continued towards the castle. 

"Good show," came Sirius's voice from behind Professor Kidrin. Jena was watching Draco walking quickly away and knew what he was doing. She knew at that moment, he was going to write to Lucius, to tell his father what he had seen. 

"Snape looks pretty peeved," Sirius added, drawing Jena's gaze away from Malfoy and towards Professor Snape. 

It was clear to Jena, by Snape's malicious attitude towards his students, that this man did not like to lose. 

"You'd better get your class along as well," Jena said to Sirius, "I've got to get more mice for Addie. Hagrid's been doing a bang up job getting them together for me." 

Sirius hated the thought of leaving her alone, but decided against arguing with her about it in front of the few students that still remained. 

"See you at lunch then?" he asked. 

Jena nodded and started in the direction of Hagrid's hut as Sirius gathered up his own group of students. 

As she made her way across the dew-laden grass towards Hagrid's a gust of cold air hit her body causing her to stop abruptly, realizing she had left her coat lying on the ground. She turned to go back and retrieve it and let out a gasp. She was face to face with Professor Snape, who had her coat draped over his arm. 

"Professor," she said, meeting his glare, "you startled me." 

Snape held out his arm and she took her coat from it. She glanced over his shoulder and saw that there was no one left outside with them. 

"You should really be more careful, Professor," he said with a smirk, "It would be a shame if you were to fall ill." 

Professor Kidrin chose to ignore the heavy sarcasm with which he delivered this statement and offered him a simple "thank you". 

"I suppose you think yourself quite clever," he mumbled as she slipped on her coat. "You've done more damage than good with your little trick today." 

"Trick?" she asked, looking down as she buttoned up her coat. She realized at that moment that her thick, wool coat could not protect her from the chill of Snape's icy glare. "I'd hardly call martial arts a trick. It was quite simply a means by which to unarm my opponent." 

"You've given these students a false sense. Don't you agree? Having them believe that a common Muggle can evade a wizard's attack?" 

"Perhaps," she replied, trying not to hide the nervousness she suddenly felt, "but if just one of those students thinks twice before pulling their wands on a Muggle, then I'd be satisfied." 

"In case you've not noticed, Professor," Snape snarled, "there is a war brewing out there. We hardly need silly little exhibits such as this taking place now, of all times." 

"I will teach my students the way I feel is best. I don't come down to your dungeons and instruct you on how many Ashwinder eggs to put in a Love Potion, so I would appreciate it if you would be so kind as to keep your nose out of my class." The last sentence came out harsher than she had intended, and she noticed his lip curl in annoyance. "Now if you'll excuse me, Professor, I've things to attend to." 

She turned quickly on her heels and began again towards Hagrid's. 

Jena had taken no more than two steps before she heard Snape's voice, now full of viciousness, "_Pedafix Intrageo_". 

Her feet froze suddenly, causing her to fall forward, her knees bending. Jena pushed her herself up awkwardly. Her feet would not move from the ground, and she felt an intense pressure coming from inside her shoes as if her small feet were growing at an enormous rate. 

After righting herself, with some difficulty, she looked downward. Her shoes had broken open, unable to handle the pressure. Her feet, she saw were not growing at all. In fact, she no longer had feet, but rather a series of interloping roots that were shooting out from below her ankles at an alarming rate. Jena bent down, frantically feeling for her own feet, but there was nothing but roots. 

Jena looked up to Snape who was standing over her, his wand in his hand. He looked slightly amused, if this man could even feel such an emotion. He seemed to be taking an unnerving amount of pleasure in her situation. 

"Are you insane?" she asked as she dug at the ground wildly, trying to find the ends of the roots and stunt their growth. It seemed pointless, she soon found, to bother digging, as it seemed the deeper she dug, the deeper the sensation of the roots went. 

She gave up and stood upright again, tipping awkwardly as she did. 

"What have you done, Professor?" she asked, her voice now more panicked 

"Simply proving a point," he said silkily, "While it is possible to avoid being hit with a spell in a controlled environment, clearly it is not so in a real life situation." 

"Okay," she started, trying to sound calm, "you've proven your point. Now if you'll please release me, I'll be on my way." 

Jena looked down once again, as the feeling of the growth had stopped. She was still rooted to the ground like a tree, but the roots, apparently satisfied with their hold, had stopped their subterranean growth. She tugged each of her legs, but they both remained intact in the earth. 

When Jena looked back to Snape, ready to receive the counter-spell to free her, she saw he was walking away from her. 

"Where are you going, Professor?" she questioned him. 

Snape did not so much as give a backward glance, instead continuing on towards the warmth of the castle. It occurred to her suddenly, as she watched him, his black cloak billowing behind him as a gust of frigid air came from the north, that he intended to leave her there, out in the cold, alone. 

"What do you want from me, Snape?" she was pleading now. "Do you want me to beg? Fine, here I am. I'm begging. I'm begging you, Severus." 

Jena fell down on her knees, which she found was painful to do with her legs so deeply rooted in the ground. When she looked up again, Snape was gone. 

"Alright now, don't cry," she scolded herself, "This charm only lasts an hour or so. You'll be out well before lunch." 

Jena was perfectly aware of the charm that Snape had used on her. She had witnessed Alastor Moody use it on Death Eaters years ago. While the spell itself was simple, it was very effective in keeping those he cast it on at a stand still until members of the Magical Law Enforcement Squad could take them in for trial. Jena could not help but smile as she reminisced about time she had spent with the great Auror. 

_And here I am_, she thought as she poked aimlessly at the roots keeping her down. _What would Moody think of this? So much for 'constant vigilance'._

Jena wiped the tears from her eyes with the sleeve of her coat. She glanced around the grounds, hoping beyond hope that no one had seen her. To her relief, there was not a soul in sight. 

_Well, it can't get any worse than this,_ she thought. 

Just then, a blast of thunder echoed though the atmosphere, signaling an oncoming storm. 

XXX 

"See Harry, I told ya' Sirius would be happy for you," Ron said as he scooped himself a helping of potatoes at lunch that afternoon. 

"You said no such thing, Ron," Hermione interjected as she watched him shake his spoon, attempting to get the last smidge of potatoes off of it. 

"Well I _thought_ it," Ron mumbled, as the potatoes plopped down on his plate. "Why do you do that?" he asked Hermione with an air of annoyance. 

"Do _what_?" she shot back defensively. 

"You constantly contradict everything that comes out of my mouth," he shot back. _"'You never said that.'; 'It's Professor Black, not Sirius.'; 'That is maroon, Ron, not red.'"_

Ron's impersonation of Hermione caused Seamus to snigger, nearly making him choke on the chicken he was eating. "You two are worse than an old married couple," he said, taking a swig from his glass of water. 

"Shut up," both Ron and Hermione said angrily in unison, before each going back to their own meals in silence. 

Harry smiled to himself as he watched his two friends out of the corner of his eye. They _had_ been the best of friends for four years now, but it seemed like a lifetime to Harry. Even if neither of them would admit it, Harry felt them pulling away little by little. He almost felt envious of them, wishing he had someone that would play around with him like they did with each other. 

"So what else did you two talk about?" Ron asked Harry. 

"Not much really," Harry replied, "he's gonna try and come to our practice though." 

After that morning's duel, Harry had walked with Sirius as he returned to his class. Sirius, who had known Harry was feeling animosity towards Jena, addressed the subject. 

"She's a good person, Harry," Sirius had told him, "Just a hard person to get to know. She lost her parents at a young age as well." 

Harry, who of course could relate to that feeling of emptiness, felt a pang of guilt when Sirius had told him that. He promised himself at that moment he would stop feeling so much jealousy towards the amount of time his godfather spent with her. 

In fact, he had not even given it a second thought when he saw both their chairs empty when he came to lunch that afternoon. 

He glanced up to the Head Table and saw that Professor Snape looking more sour than usual as he ate. 

_After all_, Harry thought to himself, _she did kick Malfoy's arse. She can't be all that bad. _

XXX 

Severus, taking advantage of Black and Kidrin's absence at lunch that afternoon, helped himself to a second helping of pudding. 

He glanced up from the Daily Prophet's crossword puzzle he had been working on and saw that most of the students had already left the Great Hall. 

Two Hufflepuff boys were playing a game of Wizard's Chess on the far side of the Hall. Each destructive move echoed annoyingly in the nearly deserted room. 

The Head Table, where Severus was sitting, was nearly empty as well. Beside him, Albus and Minerva were talking quietly with each other. 

"Albus, those doors don't even _have locks on them," Minerva said, keeping her voice low. _

"I know, but that's what she says happened," Albus replied quietly as he fumbled with the wrapper of a lemon drop. 

Severus only caught a few fragments of their discussion as he turned his attention back to his puzzle. 

_Fourteen Down: creature; native to Russia; infuses humans with sense of hopeless before devouring, _he read the final clue to himself. _Anyone with half a brain can do these silly puzzles. P-O-G-R-E-B-I-N, he silently mouthed the letters. _I don't know why I even bother with these anymore. __

He was just about to finish off the last of his tea and head to his office, when the side door to the Great Hall opened and Sirius entered, heading straight towards the Head Table. 

Severus, assuming Professor Kidrin had told Sirius about their earlier confrontation, reached inside his robes slowly, fingering his wand. 

Sirius, though, passed by Snape as if he hadn't even noticed him there, stopping in front of Albus. 

"Everything all right now, Sirius?" Albus asked the out-of-breath Professor Black. 

"Well, the fever has come down a bit. She's resting in her quarters now. Says she can relax better there than in the hospital wing," Sirius replied, his breath slowing. 

Albus nodded. 

"I think Poppy's running low on the Fever Reducer…" Sirius continued. 

"Not to worry," Albus said calmly, "I'm sure Severus here can prepare another batch." 

Sirius glanced over to Severus, who clearly had not an inkling of what was going on. 

Sirius looked back to Albus and nodded. "All right then. I suppose I'll stop by the kitchen then and get her some warm soup. She really needs to eat," he leaned in closer and lowered his voice a bit as he continued, "Albus, I think it might be a good idea if you came to speak with her. She's pretty shaken." 

"I'll be up shortly, then," Albus replied. 

Sirius nodded, before turning to leave once more. 

"Albus, should I send for a replacement for her classes?" Minerva asked after Sirius had left the Hall. 

The old man shook his head. "No, I'm sure she'll be just fine by tomorrow. Why don't we just notify her afternoon students that classes will be cancelled." 

"Right away, then," Professor McGonagall replied and hurried out of the Great Hall to do so. 

The Hall was now completely empty now save, for Dumbledore and Snape. The two Hufflepuff boys who were playing chess had left for their afternoon classes. 

Severus folded his Daily Prophet newspaper and prepared to leave as well, when Albus spoke. 

"You'll have that Fever Reducing Potion to Poppy then, Severus?" the Headmaster asked. 

"I can have it ready by this evening, Headmaster," he replied, standing from the table. 

"Fine, fine. Professor Kidrin used up a great deal of Poppy's supply." 

"Kidrin?" Snape asked with surprise. 

"Yes. It seems she got herself locked out of the castle this morning after her duel with the Malfoy boy. Sat out in the cold rain for over an hour before Hagrid found her lying out on the lawn," Albus said as he watched Snape's reaction from over his half-moon spectacles. 

Dumbledore noticed the look of confusion on the Potion Master's face as he continued, "The odd thing about it all is that when Hagrid found her, she wasn't wearing any shoes." 

"But the doors of the castle aren't locked during the day…" Snape said, almost to himself. 

Albus, his blue eyes twinkling slightly, stood from the table and began to leave. He continued speaking as he walked slowly towards the doors. 

"Well, she says that's what happened, and I have no reason to believe otherwise," he said, not looking back at Snape, who was still standing at the Head Table, frozen with confusion. 

"I mean, why would she lie about it?" Albus reached the door and turned back to Severus and saw that he was in deep thought. 

"Good afternoon, Professor," Albus said as he walked through the door, leaving Snape alone. 

"Good afternoon, Headmaster," Severus uttered quietly, his mind churning with questions. 

_Why hadn't Kidrin told Albus what had really happened?_ he thought. _Perhaps she hadn't wanted to start trouble with the Headmaster, being new to the school. But still, she and Sirius seem inseparable. Surely she would have gone to him. But Sirius was just here and, had he known that I'd used the Rooting Charm on her and left her there, he'd have been irate. Yet he had barely given me a glance._

Snape pulled himself from the questions hammering inside his head, realizing he had a class to teach. 

For the rest of the day though, he could think of nothing else. 


	6. Chapter 06

Snafu – Chapter 6 

The corridors of Hogwarts were eerily quiet as Jena made her way to the Headmaster's Office Tuesday morning. 

The chicken soup Sirius had brought her the previous afternoon had calmed her considerably, allowing her mind and body some much needed rest. 

She realized, when she awoke at four o'clock that morning, that she had had a good fourteen hours of undisturbed slumber. Of course, it had been a few drops of Sleeping Draught that Sirius had surreptitiously added to her soup that had allowed her that peacefulness. 

Albus Dumbledore had been to Jena's quarters to see her shortly after she had consumed her meal. "Let her rest, Sirius," she had heard Albus say as she lay in her bed, in a state of dazed sedation. "Whatever she needed to speak to me about can wait." So here she was, five o'clock in the morning, fully awake and contemplating whether or not it was too early to be calling on the Headmaster. 

Up until now, Jena had not had an opportunity to meet with Albus since her arrival at the school. She now welcomed the chance to sit down with her affable old friend. It had been years since Jena had last been to the Headmaster's Office and she was having a bit of difficulty remembering the way. 

As if on cue, she heard his voice as she entered the corridor where his office was. 

"Are we feeling better this morning, my dear?" he asked, in his usual quiet tone. 

Dumbledore was standing before a stone statue of a gargoyle, behind which lay the entrance to his office. 

She assumed, by the tone of his voice, that he had been expecting her. 

"Physically, one hundred percent," she replied with a sniffle. "Well, make that ninety nine percent. Mentally, though, I'm afraid I'm completely drained." 

Albus smiled knowingly and conjured a tissue, which hovered before her. Jena glanced at it and smiled. 

"Always prepared, aren't you, Albus?" she asked, grabbing the tissue from the air. 

"I try, my dear," he replied, placing his arm gently over her shoulder. "Shall we?" 

Jena nodded, shoving the used tissue into the pocket of her wool coat. She had put the coat on before leaving this morning, since she still had to collect the mice she had intended to pick up from Hagrid the day before. 

"Lemon Posset," Albus said, waving his hand towards the ugly gargoyle; it immediately came to life. 

As the passage to the Headmaster's Office opened for them, Albus gently advanced Jena towards the staircase. 

She stepped through the doorway, running her hand lightly over the stone gargoyle as she passed. 

"Funny, I seem to remember that damn thing being much bigger and scarier looking the last time I was here," she called back to Albus. 

She heard the doorway behind her close with a thud as she rode the spiral stairs upward. 

"Often what seems large and frightening to us as children," he started, from a few steps below her, a hint of amusement in his voice, "doesn't seem so when we're older and wiser." 

Jena was about to respond sarcastically to that comment – she certainly did not feel the least bit wise – but when she opened her mouth, nothing came out. 

She reached the top of the staircase and opened the oak office door. Most everything about the Headmaster's Office was exactly the same as she had remembered. With mild hesitation, Jena stepped over the threshold into the room full of oddities. 

Albus quietly stood back, watching as Jena took the sight in. 

She gazed around the circular office, up to the enchanted paintings of past Hogwarts headmasters and headmistresses. Many of them were sleeping soundly within their frames. A few, though, were apparently early risers and offered her welcoming waves and quiet "good mornings", which she respectfully returned. 

Her eyes moved to the majestic phoenix, perched proudly on a golden perch, next to the oak door. 

"Fawkes?" The words fell quietly from her lips as she reached out her hand. Fawkes nudged it lightly with the red and gold plumage of his head. 

"Do you remember me?" she whispered inquisitively, as the brilliant phoenix allowed itself to be stroked. "He's just as spectacular as I remember, Albus." 

She finally removed her gaze from the creature, allowing herself to wander around the office. 

While many of the contents Jena recognized, she did notice that Albus had acquired a few new gizmos and gadgets over the years that were unfamiliar to her. 

She continued around the office, glancing at the vast assortment of books residing on sturdy, wooden shelves. She snickered when she noticed _When Life Hands You Lemons, Make Lemonade by Nadine Chelesvig_, among the titles in his collection. 

A frayed, patched hat, sitting alone on a stool, caught Jena's attention. She moved towards it apprehensively, picking it up from its resting place, and examining it closely. This was the Sorting Hat. The same hat which, when placed upon the heads of new Hogwarts students, determined the appropriate House placement. 

As she held the tattered hat in her hands, Jena wondered to herself what it was like to wear it. She craved to feel the rush excitement that must run through a young child as they anxiously awaited its proclamation. 

"Would you like to try it on?" Albus inquired, stepping from his place in the doorway. 

The sound of the Headmaster's tranquil voice brought Jena from her thoughts and she carefully replaced the hat back upon its stool. 

"No, Albus," she replied flatly, "We both know what I would have been." 

Jena let out a quiet sigh and stepped away from where the Sorting Hat lay. 

"Why don't you have a seat, my dear," he said. 

With a wave of his hand, a brown leather button-backed chair appeared in front of his claw-footed desk. 

"You are troubled," Albus continued, as he took a seat in his own chair behind his desk, "Am I correct in assuming yesterday's events have caused you some unrest?" 

Jena nodded and took a seat in the leather chair Albus had summoned for her. 

Dumbledore was examining her, with a look she knew was genuine concern. 

Jena's short legs dangled loosely over the edge of the chair, causing the bottoms of her black calf leather shoes to skim the floor. A grin then replaced her solemn expression. 

"You find something amusing?" Albus asked, bending his head slightly so that his eyes grazed her over his spectacles. 

"I was just thinking of how the last time I sat here, in this chair, my feet wouldn't even touch the floor," she answered, her gaze focused on her feet. "They do now, though." 

Albus did not reply, but, to her relief, she did note the look of concern ease slightly. 

"You know what's funny, though?" she asked, rhetorically. "I was _just_ telling Ron Weasley the other day how not all those who get sorted into Slytherin are vile." She paused, her eyes moving from Dumbledore back to the Sorting Hat. 

"I told _him_ what you have always told _me_, Albus," she continued, "How it's the choices one makes in life and all… I hope you don't mind me borrowing your speech." She smiled, looking back to the man behind the desk. 

"Not at all, my dear," he replied, "I'm actually quite flattered that you would. Makes this old man feel useful." 

Jena thought then, of how lucky she was. Albus had always made her feel safe. He was the only living person who knew who she was, where she had come from, and where, she assumed, her path may take her. 

You know, Jena," Albus continued, "Harry had a similar dilemma during his second year. He was worried that perhaps the Sorting Hat had put him in the wrong House. It terrified the boy that he may possess the qualities most prized in a Slytherin. I, of course, told him what I've always told you." 

"Harry," Jena whispered, quietly. "Albus, I didn't realize how difficult it would be to see the boy again. The last time, he was only barely over a year old. Now he's the spitting image of James," she paused a moment, collecting her thoughts before she continued, "Part of me wants to grab him and give him a big hug and tell him how sorry I am… But what the hell gives _me_ the right to tell him I'm sorry? If it wasn't for me, James and Lily may still be alive." 

Her eyes were now welling with tears and she reached into her pocket for the tissue Albus had given her earlier. She found though, that her pocket was empty and she turned to scan the floor, assuming she had dropped it. 

"Here, dear" Albus said gently, as he summoned her another. 

Jena grabbed the new tissue from the air and began to dab the tears from her eyes. 

"Well, aren't I scatty," she started, her bottom lip quivering, "I can't even keep track of stupid tissue." 

To Jena's surprise, Albus was grinning. 

"Oh, it's not you dear," he replied, "They disappear once they've been used. I find it more hygienic that way. I must say it may be one of my more practical ideas." 

Jena looked down at the tissue she had just used and giggled in spite of herself as she crumpled it up and placed it in her pocket. 

"Twelve uses for dragon's blood; disintegrating tissues… is there anything Albus Dumbledore can't do?" she asked as her face broke into a smile. 

"Well," Albus started softly, "I don't think I can possibly relieve you of the guilt you feel necessary to carry with you." 

Jena avoided his gaze. She knew the speech he was about to give her by heart, having heard it enough times from Albus, as well as Alastor, Remus and of course, Sirius. Still, no matter how many times they had assured her that she was not to blame, Jena still felt a deep sense of responsibility. 

"Albus, please don't," she said, finally bringing herself to meet his stare. The tears were returning once again and Albus, who had left his seat behind the desk and was standing before her, bent down, this time handing her an entire package of his tissues. 

She gratefully accepted them, removing one for herself and shoving the remainder of the pack into her coat pocket. 

"These aren't going to disappear on me, are they?" she asked through a forced smile. 

"Not until after they've been used," he replied, returning her smile. 

Jena blew her nose quietly, stood up and stepped past the Headmaster. She went to the window, overlooking the front lawn of the castle. The sun was beginning to rise now, and her eyes lingered a moment on the cloudless sky before looking back to Dumbledore. 

"I know in my heart it wasn't my fault, Albus. Honestly, I do," she began, shakily. "It's the 'what-ifs' that drive me mad. Every night for the past fourteen years I've tried rationalizing it. It all goes back to Malfoy, really. What if Lucius hadn't heard of Sybill's prediction? What if he hadn't been so quick to act on that information? None of it would have happened." 

Her eyes went back out the window to the lawn where, less than twenty four hours ago, she had had Draco pinned to the ground. 

Her mind wandered back to the previous day, vividly recalling Draco's eyes, cold, grey and, if only for a brief moment, terrified. She knew he'd been afraid, if only for a split second, that she was going to kill him. She had wanted to, too. For a fleeting moment, the normally cool-headed professor had wanted nothing more than to break Lucius's son's neck right then and there. 

To think of it now made her stomach ach; she began to fidget with her necklace in a vain attempt of comfort. 

"I've become the kind of person I hate, Albus," she started slowly, her voice barely over a whisper, "I yearned to end that boy's life yesterday, simply because he bears the Malfoy name." She let out nervous laugh. "How hypocritical is that?" She turned her gaze to Albus, who was considering her uneasiness with a light blue stare. 

Jena held up the gold charm she had been nervously fingering. 

"He saw this yesterday, Albus," she said, as the Headmaster glanced at the charm momentarily, "I was curious to see if he would recognize it. He left quickly after our duel yesterday, no doubt to write to his father. I suppose Lucius will be here for me soon." 

Albus raised his hand, causing Jena to silence herself. 

"I highly doubt that Lucius will move so quickly this time," Albus spoke calmly, "He _is_ pompous. He _is_ arrogant. But Lucius is _no fool_, Jena. I am quite certain he will take no chances in repeating his past mistakes." 

Jena stepped from the window and began to walk around Albus's office again, as she thought over what the Headmaster had just said. He was right, Lucius wouldn't move quickly, not after the snafu his last rush to action had caused. 

As she paced the floor, something on Albus's desk she hadn't noticed before, caught her eye. It was a shallow, stone basin, it's edge bearing the carvings of ancient runes and symbols. She was mesmerized by the placidity of the gaseous liquid contents as they rippled and shimmered inside. 

This, she knew, was a Pensieve. All of its owner's memories and experiences could be housed within it, for later use. 

"Needed to clear your head, eh?" Jena asked Albus, motioning towards the Pensieve. 

"Actually, that is _yours_. I felt a need to refresh my memory as to why exactly I hold so much trust in our beloved Potions Master," he replied, "I pull it out every so often, when Severus tests my nerves." 

Jena knew that her Pensieve, which held only one horrible memory, had been in Albus's care for years and was curious as to what had led the Headmaster to use it. 

"What did Snape do?" she asked, puzzled. 

Rather than reply, Albus's brilliant blue eyes danced towards the office window. 

It suddenly occurred to Jena, as she went back to the window, that Albus's office overlooked the front lawn and that he, in fact, must have seen her confrontation with Professor Snape. 

"You saw it all, didn't you?" she asked quickly. "You sat up here and watched Severus curse me, didn't you?" 

"I may have noticed the two of you conversing." 

"_Conversing?_" she exclaimed, in disbelief, "Albus, he hit me with a Rooting Charm and left me out in the middle of a massive downpour." 

"I was curious," he replied, not flinching in the least at her miffed tone. 

"Curious," she repeated, with an air of annoyance, "What _exactly_ were you curious about? Perhaps you wanted to see how long it took for the wicked witch to melt?" 

"Let me ask you something, Jena," he said, his tone remaining placid. "I know for a fact that Alastor taught you how to counter a Rooting Charm some years ago. My question is: What exactly kept you from using it?" 

Jena sank back slightly, considering his question. 

It was true, Alastor had taught her to counter the Rooting Charm. In fact, he had taught Jena a number of things over the years she had spent under his supervision. 

Alastor Moody, or "Mad-Eye", as he was more commonly known, was an Auror. It was his job, as such, to capture those who were a threat to the Wizarding world, mainly Death Eaters. Jena had witnessed more violence on these "outings", as he had called them, than a young child should. 

While she had known that what Alastor and the other Aurors did was for the greater good, she could not help but come to the conclusion that magic was simply too easily abused. 

That was part of the reason why she had left Alastor's care when she had come of age. Jena had wanted to shut down that part of herself. She felt she needed to break free of it completely, and had chosen to live a simple, magic-free life. 

"I was afraid, Albus," she finally answered, "I haven't so much as touched my wand in nearly seven years." 

Albus nodded in comprehension. 

"Plus," she added as an afterthought, "I deserved it." 

Jena thought back to her confrontation with Snape. His voice had been so harsh, his stare so cold and void of recognition. 

"Do you really believe that?" Albus asked. "After saving him from a most certain death, you feel obliged to allow him to treat you like that?" 

"First off," she started, "My _saving_ him was completely unintentional. I was merely attempting to tell him…." 

"That James had not abandoned Harry and Lily," Albus, stated, completing her sentence. 

"Right. Secondly, I'm not so sure it's such a blessing to him that he _did_ live. I mean, really, he seems to me to be completely miserable, Albus. Never smiling, rarely speaking and when he _does_ open his mouth, there's not a single kind word that comes out of it. I'm under the distinct impression that he'd rather have died that night." 

To Jena's astonishment, she saw a slight smile forming from the corners of Albus's lips. 

"Severus's less than formidable attitude should not be solely attributed to that night's events. He's always been a bit – how do I say this nicely – churlish." 

"Oh, wonderful. Isn't _this_ going to be a pleasant trip," she breathed with sarcasm, rolling her eyes. 

"What's that?" 

"We had a wager that if I won the duel, Severus would escort me on the first trip to Hogsmeade," mumbled Jena. She was now second-guessing _that_ brilliant idea, now realizing what a completely sour individual Snape really was. 

Albus peered over his spectacles at her, a distinct expression of puzzlement upon his face. 

"And he agreed?" he asked her with surprise. 

"Well, yeah. I suppose he was confident that Malfoy would win." 

"That's curious that he would even consider such a proposal," Albus said quietly. 

"Why is that so curious?" asked Jena, now baffled, herself, by Albus's reaction. "Is he that tart that he would detest a single day in public with someone like me?" 

"There is something I need to let you in on regarding Severus, Jena," said Albus, "You see, dear, he has not left the boundaries of these castle grounds for nearly fourteen years." 

Jena's mouth hung open in shock. She was completely speechless upon hearing this revelation. 

"Immediately after Voldemort's downfall at the Potter's, I suggested to Severus, that he remain within Hogwarts, for his own protection. With Voldemort out of the way, so to speak, I knew the Aurors would be taking in a number of suspected Death Eaters. I didn't want Severus harmed, either by an overzealous Auror, or a Death Eater who may have caught on to his activities." 

"Fourteen years of solitude – that explains a lot," said Jena, still in shock. 

Jena had so many questions she wanted answers to now, but they would have to wait. 

There was a knock on the oak office door, which opened, before Albus could answer. 

"Oh, here you are," said Sirius, breathless from running up the staircase to the office. "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt…." 

"No, I believe we're done here," said Jena, "Besides, I need to pick up those mice for Addie. No doubt she's famished." 

Sirius, who had now entered the Headmaster's Office, closed the door behind him and replied, "Don't worry about that. Hagrid took care of her yesterday for you." 

Jena was pleasantly surprised to find that someone would be so kind as to think to take care of her pet. 

"Well, it's good to know that if anything ever happens to me, there is at least one person who will look after my Addie," she said, heading for the door. 

Stopping, just short of the door, Jena turned back to Albus. 

"Actually, Albus, there is one more thing I wanted to run by you, if you can spare me a few moments." 

Albus nodded as he picked up Jena's Pensieve. 

"Of course, dear, let me just put this away," he said, heading towards the stairs that led to a landing overlooking his office. 

Jena turned to Sirius. 

"Save me a place at the table?" she asked, hinting to him that she wanted to have a few more moments alone with the Headmaster before coming to down to breakfast. 

"Sure," replied Sirius, opening the door to leave. "Oh, and Jena," he started, "thought you might like to know, you're hanging out." 

Sirius motioned towards his chest and Jena looked down at her own, horrified. She then saw that it was, in fact, her necklace he was speaking of, and she replaced it promptly under her blouse. 

"Thank you," she said, blushing at her misinterpretation. 

Sirius gave her a wink and exited the Headmaster's Office, closing the oak door behind him.


End file.
